•Wf 


>    c' 


THE  ~" 


YOUNG  MAN'S  COUN&EJX)R; 


OF 

THE  DUTIES  AND  DANGERS 

OF 

YOUNG  MEN. 


DESIGNED  TO  BE  A  GUIDE  TO  SUCCESS  IN  THIS  LIFE,  AND  TO 
HAPPINESS  IN  THE  LIFE  WHICH  IS  f  0  COME. 


BY  REV.  DANIEL  WISE,  A.  M., 

AUTHOR  OF  "THE  PATH  OF  LirE,"   "BRIDAJ,  GREETINGS,"  "LIFE  OP 
ZWINQLE,"  ETC. 


Cincinnati: 

PUBLISHED  BY  POE  &  HITCHCOCK, 

FOB    THE    METHODIST    EPISCOPAL    CHURCH,  AT   THE    WESTERN    BOOK 
CONCERN,  CORNER  OF  MAIN  AND  EIGHTH  STREETS. 

£.    P.    THOMPSON,    PRINTER. 

1862. 


COPY-RIGHT   SECURED. 


10 

THE  YOUNG  MEN  OF  AMERICA 
3D  fit*  -Boafe 

IS  AFFECTIONATELY  INSCRIBED, 

BY 
THEIB    SINCEEE    FEIEND    AND    WELL- WI SHEH 

DANIEL  WISE. 


ref  at*. 


ELOVE  to  look  upon  a  young  man.  There  is 
a  hidden  potency  concealed  within  his  breast 
which  charms  and  pains  me.  I  silently  ask, 
What  will  that  youth  accomplish  in  the  affcertime 
of  his  life  ?  Will  he  take  rank  with  the  benefactors 
or  with  the  scourges  of  his  race?  Will  he,  ere- 
while,  exhibit  the  patriotic  virtue  of  Hampden 
and  Washington,  or  the  selfish  craftiness  of  Ben- 
edict Arnold?  If  he  have  genius,  will  he  conse- 
crate it,  like  Milton  and  Montgomery,  to  human- 
ity and  religion;  or,  like  Moore  and  Byron,  to 
the  polluted  altars  of  passion?  If  he  have  mer- 
cantile skill,  will  he  employ  it,  like  Astor  or 
Grirard,  to  gratify  his  lust  of  wealth;  or  to  ele- 
vate and  bless  humanity,  like  some  of  our  living 
merchant  princes?  If  the  gift  of  eloquence  be 
hidden  in  his  undeveloped  soul,  will  he  use  it, 

5 


6  PREFACE. 

like  Summerfield,  in  favor  of  religion,  or,  like 
Patrick  Henry  and  Adams,  in  battling  for  human 
rights ;  or  will  he,  for  mammon's  sake,  prostitute 
that  gift  to  the  uses  of  tyranny  and  infidelity? 
Will  that  immortal  soul,  which  beams  with  intel- 
ligence and  power  in  his  countenance,  ally  itself 
with  its  Creator,  and  thus  rise  to  the  sublime 
hight  of  its  destiny;  or  will  it  wage  war  with 
truth  and  duty,  and  thus  sink  to  degradation  and 
to  death?  As  I  raise  these  great  queries  I  at 
once  do  reverence  to  the  high  potentiality  of  his 
nature,  and  tremble  for  his  fate.  I  feel  a  desire 
arising  within  me  to  bear  a .  part  in  guiding  him 
into  the  way  of  right,  duty,  and  happiness.  As 
a  fruit  of  that  often-felt  desire,  I  have  written 
this  book.  May  its  success  equal  the  ardor  and 
sincerity  of  my  wishes  for  the  best  good  of  young 

men! 

DANIEL  WISE. 

Fall  River,  November,  1850. 


CHAPTEK   I. 

YOUTHFUL    DAY-DREAMS    DISSOLVED. 

The  young  man  invited  to  view  the  future — A  joyous  thought — 
A  young  man's  dream  of  life — Disenchantment — The  sower  and 
the  harvest — The  young  man  a  sower  in  the  field  of  life — The  two 
harvests — To  be  a  young  man  a  very  serious  fact — Sailing  on  a 
quiet  river  and  steering  through  dangerous  straits — The  enchanted 
hill — Life  an  enchanted  hill,  with  many  victims — Every  young 
man  who  falls  is  his  own  destroyer — The  Alpine  muleteer  and  the 
meditative  man — An  enemy  at  home — The  asp — The  young  man's 
complaint  anticipated — Caution  the  parent  of  success — Napoleon's 
forecast — Dupont's  incaution — The  defeat  at  Baylen — Every  young 
man  may  conquer  the  obstacles  of  life — The  young  man  should 
cheerfully  contend  for  success — Alcinou's  Garden. Page  13 

CHAPTER   II. 

THE    CORNER-STONE    OF    A    SUCCESSFUL    LIFE. 

The  stately  mansion — Its  ruin — The  owner's  folly — Every  young 
man  is  constructing  a  character — Its  materials — Importance  of  a 
right  foundation — Building  on  the  sand — Ruin — The  true  founda- 
tion of  right  character — The  temporal  advantages  of  a  religious 
life — Prosperity  not  the  exclusive  heritage  of  worldlings — Benefits 
of  religion — The  lovely  charmer  and  her  promises — Religion  not 
the  only  path  to  temporal  good — Worldlings  prosper  without  it- 
No  tranquillity  to  mere  worldlings — Confessions  of  Voltaire — Ches- 
terfield— Lord  Byron — Nelson — Talleyrand — Randolph — An  aifect- 
ing  contrast — Religious  life  preferable  to  one  of  profitable  sin — 
Extract — An  illustration — The  poisoned  water — Specifics — The 
poisoned  heart — The  genius  of  the  world  and  religion — The  choico 

7 


8  CONTENTS. 

of  wisdom — An  appeal — Caution — Elements  of  success  in  life- 
Religion  creates  them  all — Every  young  man  may  reach  success 
through  religion Page  20 

CHAPTER  III. 

IHTECIBITY    NECE8SABY    TO     SUCCESS     I  If    LIFE. 

Integrity — Its  nature  and  operations — Kossuth's  noble  reply — 
Zwingle  and  his  Papal  pension — The  Scotch  divines  and  their  op- 
position to  state  control — A  sublime  scene — The  protest — The  se- 
cession— Excitement — Joy  of  the  people — Tanfield  Hall — Song  of 
joy — Moral  beauty  of  integrity — Integrity  inspires  confidence — 
It  gives  influence — The  rivalry  of  Robespierre  and  Mirabeau  an 
illustration — Exciting  scene  in  a  Jacobin  club — Robespierre's  vic- 
tory— The  secret  of  his  success — Integrity  necessary  in  small  mat- 
ters— The  clerk,  the  mechanic,  the  farmer,  the  artist,  exhorted  to 
this — Small  tests  not  to  be  despised— Their  effect  on  the  formation, 
of  right  habits — Luther — Zwingle — Kossuth — A  counting-room 
scene — The  reward  of  integrity — Lightning-conductors  an  illustra- 
tion— Gideon  Lee  and  the  goat-skins — The  young  man's  resolve — 
A  serious  question — Counting  the  cost — Religion  creates  integrity 
of  the  highest  order — Should  be  sought 43 

CHAPTER   IV. 

INTELLIGENCE   AN    ELEMENT    OF    A   SUCCESSFUL    LIFE. 

A  German  legend— Knowledge  a  talisman — How  some  young 
men  treat  knowledge — The  influence  of  intellect  on  the  counte- 
nance— Influence  a  result  of  intellectual  culture — Examples  in 
the  lives  of  Franklin,  Cromwell,  Eldon,  Burke,  Canning, 
Brougham — The  sailor-boy's  reverie  at  sea — Its  results — All  young 
men  dream  of  being  successful — Why  so  few  realize  their  hopes — 
The  price  of  success — Cicero  and  Demosthenes — Sir  William 
Jones — Newton — Burke — Michael  Angelo — John  Q.  Adams — The 
river  and  the  spring — Any  young  man  may  be  successful,  if  he 
will — Poverty  no  necessary  hinderance — Cook,  Nelson,  Franklin. 
Eldon,  Ferguson,  Heyne,  Kirke  White,  etc. — Extract  from  Long- 
fellow— The  young  man  incited  to  effort — Religion  needed  to 
guide  the  intellect — Lord  Bacon — Rousseau — Voltaire — Byron— 


CONTENTS.  9 

The  steamship — Poetic  extract — Scene  in  an  ancient  village — The 
secret  of  John  Bunyan's  fame — Religion  and  its  influence  over  the 
intellect — Its  great  thoughts — Religious  faith — Newton — Richard 
Yfatson — Appeal  to  a  young  man Page  6(j 

CHAPTER   V. 

ENERGY    AH    ELEMENT    OF    DISTINCTION. 

Impossible  the  adjective  of  fools — What  is  energy — Longfellow'i 
Excelsior  and  the  idea  of  energy — Energy  and  great  achieve- 
ments— The  student  at  college — The  history  of  great  men  ap- 
pealed to — Christopher  Columbus  an  example  of  energy — Energy 
can  overcome  every  obstacle — Energy  distinguished  from  rash- 
ness— An  oriental  warrior — Mercantile  Derars — A  sketch  pro- 
posed— Young  Edgar's  rashness  and  ruin — His  mistake  ex- 
plained— Impulsive  energy  described — Its  uselessness — The  snail 
and  the  hare — Religion  a  means  of  developing  energy — Its  cen- 
tral command — Its  divine  aid — Its  requisition  of  might  in  every 
thing — The  philosophy  of  success — Religion  must  be  sought  ••  -87 

CHAPTER    VI. 

INDUSTRY  THE  HIGHWAY  TO  SUCCESS. 

An  old  legend — The  recluse — The  angel's  visit— The  palm-tree 
and  the  rope — Moral  of  the  legend — Industry  essential  to  the  enjoy- 
ment of  life — Moments — ^Eropus — Prince  Bonbennin — The  swal- 
low— Busy  idlers — Goldsmith's  Croaker — Useful  pursuits  and 
worthy  aims  necessary  to  industry — What  may  be  accomplished 
by  industry — John  Jacob  Astor — James  and  John  Harper — Lieu- 
,  tenant-Governor  Armstrong — William  Cobbett — Various  examples 
of  industry — Industry  not  unfavorable  to  health  or  longevity — 
Henry  K.  White — The  eastern  missionary — Dying  of  nothing  to 
do — The  victim  of  self-indulgence — The  hunter  and  the  spoiled 
venison — Picture  of  an  idle  man — Desire  of  young  men  for  an 
idle  life  considered — A  life  of  idleness  a  curse — Effect  on  the 
intellect — Beautiful  extract  from  Tennyson — Idleness  and  Vice — 
The  fate  of  the  idler — Extreme  cases — The  Succedaneum — Life 
reviewed  by  an  idler  on  his  death-bed — Religion  an  antidote  for 
idleness— Quotation  from  Aldrich 105 


10  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

ECONOMY    AND    TACT. 

Importance  of  saving — The  leaking  reservoir — Pactolus  and  pov- 
erty— The  good  genius — Economy  a  trite  theme — A  picture- 
Ralph  Montcalm  described — Dialogue  between  Ralph  and  a 
dandy — Cigar-smoking  discussed  —  Ralph  and  the  fashionable 
young  man — Boarding  at  a  fashionable  house — Ralph's  friends 
and  benevolence — Ralph  a  good  example  of  economy — Principles 
of  economy — Spend  less  than  you  earn — Little  expenses — The  ants 
and  the  captive  caterpillar — Debt — Littleness — The  farmer  and 
the  student — Tact — What  it  is — It  is  necessary — May  be  culti- 
vated— Relation  of  religion  to  economy  and  tact Page  129 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

HARMONY     OF     CHAEACTEE. 

Remark  by  the  Abbe  Mennais — The  harmony  of  nature  illus- 
trative of  harmony  of  character — Effects  of  excess,  or  defects  in 
particular  qualities — The  rich  youth  an  example  of  defect — Quo- 
tation from  Shakspeare — Lord  Byron  au  illustration  of  excess  and 
defect — Necessity  of  symmetry  in  character — An  important  ques- 
tion— The  circle — Regulus  and  his  sentiment  concerning  Roman 
honor — A  central  principle  like  the  centripetal  force — What  prin- 
ciple will  produce  symmetry — Honor  insufficient — Self-respect  de- 
fective— Example  in  case  of  Professor  Webster — Religion  furnishes 
the  principle — Its  comprehensiveness — Its  potentiality — Young 
man  urged  to  seek  it 148 

CHAPTER    IX. 

VICE    AND    ITS    ALLUEE  MENTS. 

Dante  and  the  three  beasts — The  panther  a  symbol  of  voluptu- 
ousness— The  lion,  of  ambition — The  wolf,  of  avarice — Successive 
dangers — Youth  the  age  of  passion — Passion  may  be  an  instru- 
ment of  mental  strength — One  chief  danger — Byron  on  vice — The 
blooming  shrub — Delusive  aspect  of  vice — The  canary-birds — Fas- 
cinations— Dante's  inscription  over  the  gate  of  hell — Escape  from 
rice  next  to  impossible — The  cobra  di  capello — History  a  great 


CONTENTS.  11 

commentary  on  the  power  of  vice — Mark  Antony — Robert  Burns— 
Richard  Brinsley  Sheridan — Vice  enslaves  great  minds — The  only 
hope — The  plea  of  the  novitiate — The  dogs  of  Egypt — A  little 
indulgence  dangerous — Tasso's  knights  in  Armida's  isle — Invis- 
ible hooks — The  bird — The  watch — Mohammed  and  the  poison  of 
Khaibar — Horace  Mann's  thought — Religion  the  effectual  safe- 
guard   Page  162 

CHAPTER   X. 

VICE    AND    ITS     CONSEQUENCES. 

Patriarchal  life — Abraham  and  Lot — Lot  and  the  vale  of  Sodom— 
His  disappointment  and  ruin — The  youth  and  guilty  pleasures — 
Hazael's  indignation — Disappointment  of  profligates — Testimony 
of  a  veteran — Why  vice  is  pursued — Passion  a  tyrant — The  drunk- 
ard— The  quagmire — Mental  slavery — Dr.  Morton — Extract  from 
Byron — George  Wachs — The  sudden  desire — The  temptation — The 
crime — Shame  after  a  first  fall — Ruin  of  the  vicious  a  moral  cer- 
tainty— Swift  destruction — Reginald — His  character — His  tempt- 
ers— His  fall — Scene  in  his  sick-room — His  pastor's  visit — Last 
•words — Legions  of  such  youth — Ruin  a  Briareus — Rivers  with 
many  mouths — Arthur's  visit  to  the  city — Dissipation — The 
crime — Prison  scene — The  death  hour — Young  man  addressed — 
Ruin  sometimes  delayed — Self-confidence — The  furious  rider- 
Risks — Two  facts — Crime — How  it  begins — The  agonized  mother — 
English  criminals — Effects  of  vice  on  the  physical  constitution — A 
victim  described  —  Remorse — Viscount  Kenmnir — Oliver  Gold- 
tmith — Spira — Death — Judgment  to  come 183 

CHAPTER  XI. 

VICE    AND    ITS    SEDUCERS. 

The  voices  of  home — Vice  renders  a  young  man  deaf  to  these 
voices — Bad  books — Impure  pictures — Their  influence — Are  all 
novels  injurious — One  class  of  novels  leads  to  another — The  rip- 
ples, the  breakers,  and  the  under-current — The  caution  too  late — 
Experience  of  novel-readers — Quotation  from  Dante — Novel-read- 
ers can  not  escape  without  some  evil — The  river  and  its  bed — • 
Wicked  companions — Their  pleasure  to  corrupt — Air  and  mind — 


12  CONTENTS. 


Notices  and  their  seducers — The  turning-point — The  bird  and  its 
prey  —  Finished  seducers — The  gambler  described — The  liber- 
tine— How  he  tempts — The  harlot  —  Fate  of  her  victim — The 
skeptic — His  character — His  seductions— Character  cf  the  cham- 
pions of  infidelity — All  the  wicked  to  be  avoided — Appeal -Page  212 

CHAPTER  XII. 

COURTSHIP  AND  MARRIAGE. 

The  barren  rock  and  the  cloud  of  dust — Forest  trees  and  rivers 
springing  from  small  beginnings — Human  blindness  to  the  works 
of  nature — Blindness  to  the  results  of  human  actions — Courtship 
a  serious  theme — Erroneous  views  of  courtship — False  views  of 
marriage — The  high  ends  contemplated  in  marriage — Right  opin- 
ions necessary  to  avoid  debasement — Safety  of  right  views — Ne- 
cessity of  caution  in  the  choice  of  a  bride — Care  needed  at  the 
beginning — Accomplishments  no  substitute  for  solid  excellences — 
Hannah  More — Qualities  to  be  sought  in  a  young  woman — Fru- 
gality— Industry — Sobriety — Intelligence  and  good  sense — Amia- 
bility—Pleasing countenance — Moral  influence  of  early  court- 
ship— Affection  necessary  to  honorable"  marriage — Social  equal- 
ity— Marriage  for  money  hateful — Skeptical  women  to  be 
avoided — No  haste  to  marry — Stability — Wrong  to  violate  prom- 
ises of  marriage  through  fickleness — Are  such  promises  never  to 
be  violated — Courting  at  night  censured — William  Cobbett's  court- 
ship— Concluding  note 233 


THE 

3  C0uimI0r. 


CHAPTEK  I. 

YOUTHFUL   DAY-DREAMS   DISSOLVED. 


me  your  hand,  my  dear  young  friend, 
and  I  will  lead  you  to  the  dark  passages 
and  the  rugged  steeps,  whose  forbidding  shadows 
fall  gloomily  on  the  highway  of  life.  I  will  also 
conduct  you  to  the  green  and  sunny  spots  whereon 
you  may  indulge  in  innocent  delights.  Open  your 
heart  to  my  counsels.  I  will  teach  you  how  to 
escape  the  teeming  dangers  which,  like  troops  of 
ill-omened  phantoms,  wait  in  the  "slippery  places" 
of  youth,  seeking  his  destruction.  I  will  unfold 
to  you  the  secrets  of  success  and  of  eminence  in 
this  life,  and  the  sure  means  of  winning  a  crown 
of  glory  in  the  next. 

It  is,  without  doubt,  a  very  joyous  thought  to 

13 


14-  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

you  that  you  have  become  a  young  man.  Man- 
hood has  long  been  the  fairy-land  of  your  boy- 
hood's reveries.  Your  full  heart  swells,  as  you 
exclaim : 

"  Time  on  my  brow  hath  set  his  seal ; 
I  start  to  find  myself  a  man." 

Your  spirits  flow  in  rich  currents  of  feeling, 
and  your  lively  imagination  paints  the  most  invit- 
ing pictures  of  the  future.  To  you,  life  is  as  the 
lovely  vale  of  Arno,  with  its  enchanting  scenery 
of  groves  and  gardens,  grottoes,  palaces,  and 
towers;  its  transparent  lakes,  delicious  air,  and 
sunny  skies.  You  can  comprehend  the  poet,  who 
says: 

"  To  sanguine  youth's  enraptured  eye, 
Heaven  has  its  reflex  in  the  sky, 
The  winds  themselves  have  melody, 
Like  harp  some  seraph  sweepeth ; 

A  silver  decks  the  hawthorn  bloom, 
i 

A  legend  shrines  the  mossy  tomb, 

And  spirits  throng  the  starry  gloom, 
Her  reign  when  midnight  keepeth." 

It  seems  a  pity  to  dim  so  fair  a  vision.  I  feel 
sad,  as  I  proceed  to  break  the  sweet  enchantment, 


YOUTHFUL   DAY-DREAMS   DISSOLVED.  15 

and  by  touching  it  with  the  wand  of  truth,  to 
overcast  it  with  clouds  and  storms.  But  I  should 
not  be  a  faithful  friend  if  I  did  not  assure  you 
that  these  rosy  anticipations  are  destined  to  be 
followed  by  disappointment.  You  must  and  will 
learn  the  truthfulness  of  the  following  sweetly- 
solemn  strain : 

"  Little  we  dream,  when  life  is  new, 
And  nature  fresh  and  fair  to  view, 
When  throbs  the  heart  to  pleasure  true, 

As  if  for  naught  it  wanted — 
That  year  by  year,  and  ray  by  ray, 
Bomance's  sunlight  dies  away, 
And  long  before  the  hair  is  gray 

The  heart  is  disenchanted." 

Let  us  walk  forth  into  the  fields,  and  learn  a 
lesson  from  yonder  husbandman.  He  is  casting 
handfuls  of  seed  broadcast  upon  the  upturned  soil. 
A  moment's  reflection  teaches  you  that  very  much 
of  the  forthcoming  harvest  depends  upon  that 
sower  and  his  seed.  If  he  has  properly  chosen 
and  prepared  the  soil;  if  the  seed  be  of  high 
quality;  if  it  be  sown  in  proper  quantity,  and 
harrowed  with  all  due  skill,  the  conditions  of  a 


16  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

good  and  abundant  harvest  are  fulfilled,  and  may 
be  reasonably  expected.  But  if  he  has  scantily 
sown  poor  seed  in  an  ungenial  and  neglected  soil, 
a  good  harvest  is  out  of  the  question.  The  appli- 
cation of  this  figure  to  yourself  is  easy.  You  are 
now  a  sower  of  seed  on  the  field  of  life.  These 
bright  days  of  youth  are  the  seed-time.  Every 
thought  of  your  intellect,  every  emotion  of  your 
heart,  every  word  of  your  tongue,  every  principle 
you  adopt,  every  act  you  perform,  is  a  seed,  whose 
good  or  evil  fruit  will  be  the  bliss  or  bane 
of  your  aftertime.  As  is  the  seed,  so  will  be  the 
crop.  Indulge  your  appetites,  gratify  your  pas- 
sions, neglect  your  intellect,  foster  wrong  princi- 
ples, cherish  habits  of  idleness,  vulgarity,  dissipa- 
tion, and  in  the  after  years  of  manhood  you  will 
reap  a  plentiful  crop  of  corruption,  shame,  degra- 
dation, and  remorse ;  and,  it  may  be, 

"  Year  by  year,  alone 
Sit  brooding  in  the  ruins  of  a  life, 
Nightmare  of  youth,  the  specter  of  yottrtelf." 

But    if  you   control  your  appetite,   subdue  your 


YOUTHFUL  DAY-DREAMS   DISSOLVED.  17 

passions,  firmly  adopt  and  rigidly  practice  right 
principles,  form  habits  of  purity,  propriety,  sobri- 
ety, and  diligence,  your  harvest  will  be  one  of 
honor,  health,  happiness;  and 

"Aftertime, 

And  that  full  voice  which  circles  round  the  grave, 
Will  rank  yon  nobly." 

That  you  have  reached  the  period  of  youth,  is, 
therefore,  for  you,  a  very  serious  fact.  "  Great 
destinies  lie  shrouded"  in  your  swiftly-passing 
hours.  Great  responsibilities  stand  in  the  pas- 
sages of  every-day  life.  Great  dangers  lie  hidden 
in  the  by-paths  of  life's  great  highway;  and  sirens, 
whose  song  is  as  charming  as  the  voice  of  Calypso, 
are  there  to  allure  you  to  destruction.  Great  un- 
certainty hangs  over  your  future  history.  God 
has  given  you  existence,  with  full  power  and 
opportunity  to  improve  it,  and  be  happy.  He 
has  given  you  equal  power  to  despise  the  gift, 
and  be  wretched.  Which  you  will  do,  is  the 
grand  problem  to  be  solved  by  your  choice  and 
conduct.  To  you,  so  young,  so  inexperienced,  sc 
susceptible  of  evil,  so  capable  of  good,  so  full  of 
2 


18  THE   YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

stormy  feelings,  so  unsettled  in  opinion,  is  com* 
mitted  the  awful  trust  of  your  future  happiness. 
Your  bliss  or  misery,  in  two  worlds,  hangs  poised 
in  the  balance.  The  manner  in  which  you  spend 
your  youth  will  turn  the  scale  for  weal  or  for  woe. 
Verily  it  has  been  well  said,  that  the  season  of 
youth  is  a  critical  period.  Critical,  indeed  !  And 
I  would,  if  possible,  engrave  the  thought,  in  inef- 
faceable letters,  on  your  susceptible  heart,  and 
make  you  feel  how  much  the  fashioning  of  your 
destiny,  which  hitherto  has  been  more  in  the 
hands  of  others  than  in  your  own,  is  now  confided 
to  your  discretion. 

As  a  boy,  at  home,  you  have  sailed  upon  the 
calm  waters  of  a  quiet  river,  in  a  bark  carefully 
furnished  by  a  mother's  love,  and  safely  guided  by 
a  father's  skill.  Now  you  are  sailing  through  the 
winding  channels,  the  rocky  straits,  the  rapid, 
rushing  currents,  at  the  river's  mouth,  into  the 
great  sea  of  active  life.  And  here,  for  the  first 
time,  you  are  in  command  of  the  vessel.  On  your 
skill  and  caution  depends  the  safety  of  the  pas- 
sage. Neglect  the  rules  laid  down  on  the  chart 


YOUTHFUL  DAY-DREAMS  DISSOLVED.  19 

of  experience  by  previous  navigators,  take  passion 
for  a  pilot,  place  folly  at  the  helm,  and  your  bark 
wil.  shortly  lie  a  pitiful  wreck  on  the  rocks,  or  be 
so  damaged  as  to  peril  your  safety  on  the  coming 
voyage.  But  study  well  the  intricacies  and  dan- 
gers of  your  course,  take  counsel  of  experience,  let 
caution  be  your  pilot,  and,  without  doubt,  you  will 
escape  rock,  current,  eddy,  and  whirlpool,  and, 
with  streamered  masts  and  big  white  sail,  float 
gayly  forth  to  dare  and  conquer  the  perils  of  the 
sea  beyond. 

Among  the  fascinating  stories  of  the  Orientals 
is  one  which  describes  an  enchanted  hill,  whose 
summit  concealed  an  object  of  incomparable 
worth.  It  was  offered  as  a  prize  to  ,him  who 
should  ascend  the  hill  without  looking  behind 
him.  Bub  whoever  ventured  to  secure  this  treas- 
ure was  told  that,  if  he  did  look  backward,  he 
should  be  instantly  changed  into  a  stone.  Many  a 
princely  youth,  allured  by  the  tempting  prize,  had 
ventured  up  that  fatal  hill;  and  as  many  had  been 
changed  to  stones.  For  the  adjacent  groves  were 
filled  with  most  melodious  voices,  and  with 


20  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

of  sweetest  song,  whose  bewitching  strains  and 
enticements  followed  each  youth  as  he  ascended, 
till  he  suffered  his  innate  curiosity  to  control  his 
hopes  and  fears  —  turned  his  head,  and  instantly 
became  a  stone.  Hence,  said  the  story,  the  hill- 
side was  covered  with  stones. 

To  every  young  man,  life  is  such  an  enchanted 
hill,  with  its  thousands  of  alluring  voices  and  its 
unnumbered  victims,  who,  prompted  from  within 
themselves,  have  listened  to  some  fatal  charmer 
of  the  senses,  and  have  perished.  Yet  no  one 
of  them  ever  fell  of  necessity.  Had  they  re- 
pressed the  inward  desire  'of  evil,  by  directing 
the  energy  of  their  souls  after  the  great  prizes 
of  religion  and  virtue,  they  would  have  become 
conquerors;  for  outward  things  have  power  only 
in  proportion  to  the  disposition  of  the  mind  to 
be  affected  by  them.  Why,  for  example,  does 
the  sublime  and  beautiful  scenery  of  the  Alps 
awaken  no  emotions  of  beauty  or  sublimity  in  the 
breast  of  the  muleteer,  whose  life  is  spent  in  trav- 
ersing their  passages  ?  And  why  does  that  same 
scenery  hold  the  reflective  and  religious  mind  in 


YOUTHFUL  DAY-DREAMS   DISSOLVED.  21 

rapt  admiration?  The  answer  is  simple,  but  sig- 
nificant. Between  nature  and  the  muleteer  there 
exists  no  sympathy.  He  is  hardened  against  her. 
But  the  soul  of  the  meditative  and  cultivated  man 
is  in  harmony  with  her  charms.  Hence,  over  the 
former  she  has  no  power  while  she  inspires  the 
latter  with  rapture.  So  with  the  charms  of  vice ; 
they  fall  powerless  upon  minds  which,  cased  in 
the  mail  of  virtue,  are  proof  against  them;  but 
they  are  omnipotent  to  those  whose  undisciplined 
passions  are  looking  out  upon  life  with  prurient 
curiosity.  Such  young  men  are  doomed  to  illus- 
trate the  fable  of  the  orient,  and  to  lie  along  the 
highways  of  life,  hardened,  undone,  and  lost. 

The  young  man  can  not,  therefore,  fail  to  see 
that  he  carries  the  most  potent  of  all  sources  of 
danger  in  his  own  breast.  Within  himself,  as  the 
malignant  asp  lay  concealed  in  the  basket  of 
flowers  brought  to  Cleopatra,  lies  his  destroyer. 
Unless  you  suffer  your  own  passions  to  exercise 
lordship  over  your  reason  and  conscience,  you  can 
not  be  greatly  harmed.  But  herein  lies  your  peril, 
at  the  present  epoch  of  your  life.  Passion  is 


22  THE  YOUNG   MAN' 8   COUNSELOR 

strong,  because  reason  is  weak;  desire  eager,  be- 
cause it  must  not  be  gratified.  Your  heart  is  a 
volcano  of  feeling,  ever  heaving,  and  seeking, 
especially  when  in  presence  of  the  outward 
tempter,  to  overflow  your  life  with  vice  and  abom- 
ination. There  is  a  disposition  in  your  soul  to 
respond  to  the  fatal  voices  which  solicit  your 
senses  to  trespass  upon  forbidden  grounds.  And 
herein — I  solemnly  repeat  it  —  lies  your  most 
imminent  danger. 

These  views  are  certainly  sufficient  to  dim  the 
luster  of  those  day-dreams  of  life,  so  natural  and 
so  universal  in  young  men.  •  Perhaps  you  consider 
them  too  somber  and  gloomy  in  their  aspects. 
You  complain  that  I  have  dipped  my  pen  in  the 
too  sober  hues  of  autumn,  when  I  ought  to  have 
written  with  the  bright  drops  which  sparkle  like 
jewels  on  the  gay  blossoms  and  painted  flowers 
of  spring;  that  I  have  caused  you  to  despond, 
when  I  should  have  stimulated  your  hopes  and 
excited  your  courage.  But  such  is  not  my  inten- 
tion, nor  should  aught  I  have  said  occasion  the 
least  despondency;  it  should  only  awaken  caution; 


YOUTHFUL  DAY-DREAMS  DISSOLVED.  23 

caution,  the  parent  of  safety,  the  companion  of 
success.  Know  you  not  that  dangers  are  not  to 
be  overcome  by  blindly  rushing  among  them? 
The  wisest  and  best  men  are  they  who,  like  the 
greatest  generals,  take  distinct  cognizance  of  their 
dangers,  and  prepare  with  proper  forecast  to  over- 
come them.  Napoleon,  that  great  master  of  war, 
never  failed  to  calculate  upon,  and  to  provide  be- 
forehand for  every  imaginable  difficulty.  Had  his 
lieutenant,  the  unfortunate  General  Dupont,  acted 
on  the  same  principle  in  Spain,  the  defeat  he  suf- 
fered at  Baylen  would  not  have  tarnished  the  luster 
of  his  early  fame,  nor  rested  as  a  spot  on  the  mil- 
itary glory  of  France.  But  he  failed  of  fully  ap- 
prehending the  perils  of  his  position — was  envel- 
oped between  two  armies,  and  ingloriously  defeated. 
And  you,  young  man,  unless  you  view  life  as  it  is, 
unless  you  substitute  the  sober  lessons  of  experi- 
ence for  the  brilliant  fancies  of  imagination,  will 
find  your  Baylen,  where  you  will  lie,  crest-fallen  and 
crushed,  between  the  vices  of  your  own  nature  and 
the  evil  influences  of  vicious  society. 

Up,  then,  with  a  heroic  spirit,  and  gird  yourself 


24  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR, 

for  mortal  conflict  with  the  great  Apollyon  who 
bestrides  your  pathway !  If  he  has  subdued  thou- 
sands, thousands  have  also  subdued  him.  And 
you,  too,  may  be  his  conqueror.  Look  courage- 
ously at  the  chart  of  your  intended  voyage.  If, 
by  every  sunken  rock  and  beneath  every  dash- 
ing wave,  there  lies  the  wreck  of  youth  who  per- 
ished untimely,  there  is  also  a  haven,  beyond  the 
sea,  into  which  "  a  thousand  times  ten  thousand  and 
thousands  of  thousands  "  have  triumphantly  entered 
in  defiance  of  stormy  winds  and  roaring  waves. 
You  may  do  the  same,  if  you  will  take  timely 
heed  to  your  ways.  Success  is  before  you,  if  you 
resolutely  and  wisely  seek  it.  As  says  a  modern 
writer,  "  The  seas  of  human  life  are  wide.  Wis- 
dom may  suggest  the  voyage;  but  it  must  first  look 
to  the  condition  of  the  ship,  and  the  nature  of  the 
merchandise  to  exchange.  Not  every  vessel  that 
sails  from  Tarshish  will  bring  back  the  gold  of 
Ophir.  But  shall  it,  therefore,  rot  in  the  harbor? 
No !  Give  its  sails  to  the  wind  I" 

And  so  say  I.     Yield  your  young  heart  up  cheer- 
fully to  the  battle  of  life.      Calculate  upon  diffi- 


TOUTHFUL  DAY-DREAMS  DISSOLVED.  25 

culty;  but  calculate  also  upon  success;  only  be 
sure  you  do  it  wisely.  To  aid  you  in  this  task, 
and  to  point  out  the  safe  road  to  eminence  on 
earth  and  to  glory  in  heaven,  is  the  object  of  the 
succeeding  chapters.  Follow  my  counsels,  and  in 
your  old  age  you  will  be  like  the  trees  in  Alcinou'a 
garden,  which  were  covered  with  blossoms  and 
laden  with  fruit  at  the  same  time;  in  eternity,  you 
will  flourish  as  a  choice  plant  in  the  garden  of 
God. 


26  THE   YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  CORNER-STONE  OF  A  SUCCESSFUL  LIFE. 

RICH  man  once  undertook  to  erect  a  mag- 
nificent mansion.  With  free  and  lavish  ex- 
penditure, he  raised  its  walls,  and  adorned  it, 
within  and  without,  to  suit  his  taste.  When 
finished  it  was  a  stately  and  majestic  pile  of  archi- 
tecture. But,  before  it  was  ready  for  occupation, 
large  apertures  became  visible  in  the  walls.  The 
floors  and  ceilings  began  to  sink,  and  it  was  pro- 
nounced unsafe  for  habitation.  The  unwise  owner 
had  been  in  such  unpardonable  haste,  as  to  neglect 
proper  precautions  in  laying  the  foundation.  He 
had  built  that  massive  structure  upon  an  unsound 
surface,  instead  of  digging  down  deep  into  the 
ground  after  the  solid  rock.  There  was  no  rem- 
edy but  to  take  it  all  down  and  begin  anew.  This 
he  was  unable  to  do,  having  already  exhausted  a 
large  proportion  of  his  entire  fortune  in  its  con- 


THE   CORNER-STONE   OP  A  SUCCESSFUL  LIFE.    27 

struction.  He  was  obliged,  therefore,  to  leave  it 
to  decay  and  ruin — to  mourn  at  leisure  over  the 
irreparable  folly  he  was  too  hasty  and  too  thought- 
less to  avoid  at  the  beginning. 

I  want  the  young  man  to  give  this,  my  simple 
parable,  an  application  to  his  own  life,  since  he  is 
and  must  be  engaged  in  the  construction  of  a  char- 
acter for  two  worlds.  His  actions  and  motives  are 
to  compose  its  materials.  These,  as  they  accumu- 
late, will  give  it  form  and  subsistence.  It  will  be 
good  or  evil,  a  shelter  or  a  curse,  according  to 
their  quality.  Composed  of  evangelically-virtuous 
and  noble  acts,  it  will  afford  quiet,  honor,  and  com- 
fort in  this  life,  and,  in  the  life  to  come,  an  abode 
with  the  blessed.  Composed  of  unprincipled  and 
irreligious  conduct,  it  will  yield  him  unrest,  shame, 
disgrace  in  this  world,  and  eternal  infamy  in  the 
next. 

How  vastly  important,  then,  for  a  young  man  to 
lay  a  foundation  suited  to  the  structure  he  designs 
to  erect !  It  would  be  the  apex  of  folly  to  think 
of  placing  a  virtuous  superstructure  upon  a  sub- 
structure of  vice.  I  apprehend  no  sensible  young 


28  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

man  deliberately  resolves  to  build  a  bad  character. 
Yet  many,  who  designed  to  be  right  in  the  end, 
begin  by  indulging  in  follies  which  they  intend  to 
repudiate  at  length.  This  is  building  on  the  sand; 
for  whether  they  are  aware  of  it  or  not,  the  struc- 
ture is  beginning  to  rise,  and  every  day's  actions 
add  to  its  dimensions.  Nevertheless,  the  founda- 
tion is  unsound. 

Other  young  men,  who  avoid  these  indulgences, 
and  pride  themselves  on  a  spotless  morality,  are, 
notwithstanding  all  this,  also  building  their  char- 
acters on  the  sand.  "Why  are  they  moral?  Be- 
cause they  wish  to  be  respectable.  Why  do  they 
refrain  from  the  wine-cup,  the  card-table,  the  the- 
ater, the  house  of  "  her  whose  feet  take  hold  of 
death  f"  Because  they  are  too  proud  to  be  vicious. 
Why  are  they  diligent,  studious,  careful  of  their 
reputation  ?  Because  they  are  ambitious  of  success 
in  life.  But  what  stability  or  solidity  is  there  in 
pride  or  in  ambition?  Alas!  they  are  but  as  the 
sand !  The  first  rushing  flood  of  tempting  circum- 
stances may  wash  them,  and  the  character  that 
stands  upon  them,  to  utter  destruction ! 


THE   CORNER-STONE  OP  A   SUCCESSFUL  LIFE.    29 

What,  then,  is  the  true  foundation  of  character? 
Where  is  that  SOLID  ROCK  which  will  afford  a  firm 
resting-place  for  a  virtuous  life  —  a  sure  support 
for  the  noblest  and  most  exalted  character? 

To  this  question,  so  big  with  importance  to  every 
young  man,  I  answer,  in  the  notable  language  of 
St.  Paul,  "OTHER  FOUNDATION  can  no  man  lay 
than  that  is  laid,  WHICH  is  JESUS  CHRIST;"  which 
means  that  the  corner-stone  of  every  thing  truly 
noble  in  human  character,  of  every  thing  really 
great  and  honorable  in  human  life,  is  a  saving 
faith  in  Jesus  Christ.  Without  this,  his  earthly 
well-being  is  a  "dread  uncertainty;"  the  "black- 
ness of  darkness"  encircles  his  grave,  and  clouds 
his  prospect  of  immortality.  But  with  it,  true  to 
the  teachings  of  the  divine  Redeemer,  he  may  be 
sure  of  rising  to  at  least  a  tolerable  degree  of 
social  eminence,  to  moderate  plenty,  to  honor  and 
immortal  life. 

The  temporal  advantages  of  an  early  religious 
fife  are  not  sufficiently  considered  by  most  young 
men.  They  blindly  conclude  that  success  in  this 
life  is  the  exclusive  heritage  of  the  worldling;  that 


80  THE  YOUNG  MAN*8  COUNSELOR. 

devotion  to  God  is  the  surrender  of  present  advan- 
tages and  the  price  of  eternal  salvation.  Never 
was  any  supposition  more  false.  It  is  contrary  to 
both  experience  and  Scripture.  True,  in  the  in- 
fancy of  Christ's  religion,  and  in  seasons  of  perse- 
cution, the  martyred  confessor  mounted  his  tri- 
umphal chariot,  from  the  flames  of  his  pyre,  and 
won  his  crown  of  life  by  sacrificing  all  terrestrial 
things.  But  you,  young  man,  live  in  a  land  whose 
institutions  are  molded,  and  whose  inhabitants  are 
influenced,  to  a  great  extent,  by  the  teachings  of 
Jesus. 

Hence,  you  may  safely  calculate  upon  real 
itfing  the  apostolic  maxim,  that  "godliness  is  prof- 
itable FOR  ALL  THINGS,  having  the  promise  of  the 
LIFE  THAT  NOW  is,  and  of  that  which  is  to  come." 
You  may  reasonably  expect  that,  if  "you  seek  first 
the  kingdom  of  God  and  his  righteousness,  all  these 
[worldly]  things  shall  be  added  unto  you." 

The  benefits  of  a  pious  life  are  beautifully  exhib- 
ited in  the  third  chapter  of  Proverbs.  There  re- 
ligion is  strikingly  personified  as  a  lovely  woman 
standing  at  the  portals  of  life's  great  highway,  and 


THE   CORNER-STONE   OP  A  SUCCESSFUL  LIFE.    31 

greeting  each  joyous  youth,  as  he  enters,  with 
charming  words  and  alluring  gifts.  As  he  eagerly 
inquires  after  happiness,  she  exclaims,  "Sappy  is 
the  man  that  findeth  wisdom,  [religion,]  and  the 
man  that  getteth  understanding." 

But  the  youth  sees  the  glitter  of  gold,  the  spark- 
ling of  jewels,  and  the  profits  of  merchandise,  in 
tempting  heaps,  before  him.  His  heart  swells  with 
nameless  desires  after  the  as  yet  unknown  pleas- 
ures of  sense,  and  he  hesitates  to  submit  to  his 
beautiful  teacher.  To  decide  his  unsettled  mind, 
she  adds :  "  The  merchandise  of  it  [religion]  is 
better  than  the  merchandise  of  silver,  and  the  gain 
thereof  than  fine  gold.  She  is  more  precious  than 
rubies;  and  ALL  THE  THINGS  THOU  CANST  DESIRE 
are  not  to  be  compared  unto  her." 

This  is  promising  much;  but  the  eye  of  the 
youth  lingers  still  on  the  sensuous  and  gaudy  offer- 
ings of  sense  and  mammon.  His  charmer,  there- 
fore, proceeds  to  say,  "  Length  of  days  is  in  her 
right  hand,  and  in  her  left  hand,  RICHES  AND 
HONOR.  Her  ways  are  ways  of  pleasantness,  and 
all  her  paths  are  peace." 


82  THE   YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

Here  are  included,  health,  long  life,  prosperity, 
eminence  among  men,  tranquillity,  and  quietude 
of  conscience,  as  the  results  of  beginning  life 
aright;  and,  as  if  to  meet  the  last  wish  of  the 
most  aspiring  soul,  she  crowns  this  pyramid  of 
blessings  with  a  wreath  from  paradise,  exclaiming 
that  "  she  is  a  tree  of  life  to  them  that  lay  hold 
upon  her  •"  by  which  is  implied  that  the  blessed 
gifts  of  religion,  in  this  world,  are  to  be  succeeded 
by  a  life  of  unending  glory  in  the  next.  Could 
more  than  this  be  offered  ?  Nay,  there  is  nothing 
left  to  be  desired.  Only  surrender  your  heart  to 
the  sway  of  piety — approac'h  your  Creator,  and  en- 
treat him  to  bind  you  to  religion,  with  the  soft 
bands  of  that  love  which  "many  waters  can  not 
quench"  —  and  you  may  view  this  world  with  that 
confidence  which  cries,  "  The  Lord  is  my  Shep~ 
herd;  I  shall  not  want}"  and  the  next,  with  that 
hope  which  triumphantly  exclaims,  "  If  the  earthly 
house  of  this  tabernacle  be  dissolved,  we  have  a  build- 
ing, not  made  with  hands,  eternal,  and  in  the  heavens  " 

I  do  not  affirm  that  a  religious  life  is  the  only 
road  to  temporal  prosperity  and  social  superiority. 


THE  CORNER-STONE  OP  A  SUCCESSFUL  LIFE.    33 

Riches,  honor,  power,  and  long  life,  are  often 
gained  by  men  who  are  "an  abomination  in  the 
sight  of  God."  Superior  genius  will,  of  itself, 
win  popular  admiration,  and  command  civic  or  po- 
litical honors.  Brilliant  business  talents  will  make 
their  possessor  a  desirable  and  prosperous  man.  A 
strong  physical  constitution  is  favorable  to  longev- 
ity. And  even  duplicity,  knavery,  or  overreaching 
in  trade,  may  fill  a  man's  coffers  with  unholy  gain. 
Often,  indeed,  do  the  morally  vile,  the  enemies  of 
Christ,  climb  to  the  high  places  of  earth.  But 
their  gain  is  their  portion.  Their  advantage  is 
apparent,  and  not  real.  Beneath  a  gay  and  attract- 
ive exterior,  they  carry  a  sad  and  heavy  heart. 
To  real  contentment,  to  inward  tranquillity,  to 
genuine  happiness,  every  godless  man  is  an  utter 
stranger,  however  high  or  brilliant  may  be  his 
worldly  position.  What  irreligious  worldling,  how- 
ever proud  his  success,  ever,  in  a  candid  moment, 
made  a  profession  of  happiness  since  the  days  of 
Cain  ?  Not  one  !  On  the  other  hand,  multitudes 
of  the  world's  most  honored  and  applauded  heroes 
have  groaned  forth  the  lamentable  cry,  "Our  mis- 
-  3 


34  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

• 

ery  is  greater  than  we  can  endure !"  amidst  pro- 
fusions of  honor's,  riches,  offices,  and  plaudits. 
Kings,  princes,  senators,  philosophers,  merchants, 
warriors,  and  orators,  without  number,  when  at 
the  hight  of  their  ambition,  have  signed  the  dec- 
laration of  that  wise  monarch,  who  said  of  this 
world,  "  Vanity  of  vanities,  all  is  vanity !"  Let 
me  show  you  the  hearts  of  some  of  these,  as  they 
are  revealed  in  their  own  recorded  confessions. 

VOLTAIEE,  one  of  the  most  brilliant  of  the  sons 
of  genius,  whose  friendship  was  courted  by  power- 
ful kings,  and  whom  the  people  delighted  to  honor, 
speaking  of  li%  said,  "Life  is  thickly  sown  with 
thorns;  and  I  know  of  no  other  remedy  than  to 
pass  quickly  through  them." 

LORD  CHESTERFIELD,  a  British  nobleman,  a  man 
who  made  pleasure  his  chief  pursuit,  rich  in  titles, 
lands,  wit,  learning,  and  opportunity,  after  com- 
paring life  to  a  dull,  tasteless,  and  insipid  journey, 
said,  "As  for  myself,  my  course  is  already  more 
than  half  passed  over,  and  I  mean  to  sleep  in  the 
coach  the  rest  of  the  journey." 

BYRON,    that   highly-gifted   but   deeply-sinning 


THE  CORNER-STONE   OP   A   SUCCESSFUL  LIFE.    35 

child  of  the  Muses,  describes  human  life  in  the 
following  sorrowful  lines : 

"  Alas !  it  is  delusion  all ; 

The  future  cheats  us  from  afar, 
Nor  can  we  be  what  we  recall, 
Nor  dare  we  think  on  what  we  are." 

To  these  melancholy  confessions  we  might  add 
those  of  Nelson,  Talleyrand,  Randolph,  and  a  host 
beside,  who,  in  similar  language,  have  given  une- 
quivocal testimony  to  the  absolute  impossibility  of 
combining  genuine  enjoyment  with  a  merely-worldly 
life.  And  where  is  the  young  man  who  can  envy 
the  literary  glory  of  Voltaire,  the  "fashionable  pre- 
eminence of  Chesterfield,  or  the  blazing  luster  of 
Byron's  genius,  while  he  beholds  the  first  so  tor 
tured  with  the  thorns  of  life,  the  second  so  horri- 
fied with  its  ennui,  the  third  so  tormented  with 
remorse  and  fear,  that  a  hasty  flight,  a  blind  for- 
getfulness,  or  a  reckless  leap  into  the  great  deep 
of  consequences,  is  their  highest  consolation  ? 
Alas !  how  pitiful,  how  inexpressibly  mournful,  the 
sight,  to  see  minds  immortal  so  tormented,  and  so 
hopelessly  wretched ! 


36  THE   YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

How  beautiful  is  the  contrast  between  the  gloom 
of  these  brilliant  worldlings  and  the  lofty  cheerful- 
ness of  the  great  Christian  apostle  I  He  ranked 
not,  like  them,  with  the  lordly,  the  great,  the 
royal ;  but  was  accounted  as  "  the  filth  and  off- 
scouring  of  all  things."  His  persecutions  and  suf- 
ferings rained  on  his  head,  and  raged  around  his 
steps  in  incomparable  fury.  Yet  there  he  stood, 
firmly  and  calmly,  amidst  the  foaming  of  the  storm, 
his  feet  resting  on  the  solid  rock  of  Christ's  prom- 
ise, his  eyes  fastened  on  the  love  and  mercy  of 
God,  which,  brighter  and  lovelier  than  the  rain- 
bow, spanned  the  heavens  ;'  his  heart  beating  with 
the  glad  pulsations  of  immortal  life,  and  his  tongue 
giving  utterance  to  the  sublime  language  of  confi- 
dence, exclaiming,  "  Our  light  affliction,  which  is 
but  for  a  moment,  worketh  for  us  a  far  more  ex- 
ceeding and  eternal  weight  of  glory !"  Tell  me, 
young  man,  if  this  noble  bearing,  this  divine  tri- 
umph, under  the  sorest  of  present  ills,  is  not  of 
more  value  than  all  the  pleasures  of  sense,  the 
pomp  of  power,  or  the  luxuries  of  wealth  !  How 
infinitely  preferable,  therefore,  must  be  a  life 


THE   CORNER-STONE   OP   A   SUCCESSFUL   LIFE.    37 

consecrated  to  religion,  in  its  prime,  to  a  life  of 
even  profitable  sin  !  To  every  innocent  gratification 
that  earth  can  give  to  the  senses,  religion  joins  a 
eweet  repose  of  spirit,  which  must  be  ever  un- 
known to  those  whose  souls  are  not  in  harmony 
with  their  Creator.  For,  as  the  ABBE  MENNAIS 
has  beautifully  said,  "  While  a  sinful  life  engen- 
ders suffering,  and  a  sorrow  is  always  hidden  at 
the  bottom  of  a  forbidden  joy,  calmness,  on  the 
contrary,  serenity,  unvarying  contentment,  are  the 
lot  of  a  pure  conscience.  It  resembles  the  spar- 
row, sweetly  reposing  in  its  nest,  while  the  tem- 
pest abroad  bends  and  breaks  the  tops  of  the 
forest." 

Who  has  not  heard  of  those  triumphs  of  art  and 
labor,  by  which  the  waters  of  the  Croton  and  of 
Cochituate  lake  are  made  to  flow,  in  iron  arteries, 
through  the  streets,  and  into  the  very  chambers  of 
the  citizens  of  two  great  American  cities?  Let 
us  suppose  that  these  waters,  by  some  mysterious 
change,  become  insipid  and  even  poisonous.  Con- 
fusion, disappointment,  and  even  intense  suffering, 
tre  the  immediate  results.  Amidst  the  universal 


88  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

dismay  of  such,  a  misfortune,  two  men  appear  be- 
fore the  city  councils,  with  specifics  for  the  healing 
of  the  waters. 

"I,"  affirms  the  first,  "have  a  powder,  a  pinch. 
of  which  will  heal  a  gallon  of  the  water,  and 
render  it  sweet  as  before." 

The  city  fathers  look  joyfully  at  each  other. 
Water  is  brought.  The  powder  is  infused  with 
eager  haste;  each  official  sips  a  drop  or  two,  and 
pronounces  it  delicious.  The  powder  is  equal  to 
the  claims  of  the  inventor.  Eulogy  is  exhausted 
in  its  praise.  They  inquire  the  price  of  this  great 
discovery;  and  are  about  to  conclude  a  contract 
for  its  purchase,  when  the  second  man  steps  up, 
saying, 

"Gentlemen,  I  have  a  specific,  which,  cast  into 
the  springs  of  the  lake  or  the  river,  will  heal  the 
whole  forever." 

The  city  fathers  are  incredulous  at  first.  But 
the  man  is  earnest  and  evidently  sincere.  He  de- 
mands a  bond  for  an  immense  price,  to  be  paid  if 
he  fulfills  his  promise.  Otherwise,  he  asks  noth- 
ing. Now,  if  these  city  fathers  were  wise,  with 


THE   CORNER-STONE   OF   A   SUCCESSFUL  LIFE.    39 

which  of  these  men,  think  you,  they  would  con- 
clude a  contract?  Judge  for  them,  young  man, 
if  they  ought  not,  at  almost  any  cost,  to  purchase 
the  specific  which  would  entirely  remove  the  evil 
at  once. 

Need  I  make  an  application  of  this  illustration  ? 
Can  you  not  already  perceive  its  force,  and  feel  its 
bearing  on  yourself?  Know  you  not  that  the 
heart,  originally  pure  as  the  springs  of  Paradise, 
has  become  radically  unclean  ?  that  its  natural 
streams  flow  forth  in  bitterness  exceeding  the  taste 
of  aloes,  and  in  pollution  more  vile  than  the  spumy 
waves  of  a  turbid  sea  ?  Hence,  it  follows  that  life 
becomes  a  "heritage  of  woe."  To  escape  from 
this  woe,  every  young  immortal  looks  out  of  him- 
eelf  for  help.  Before  him  stands  the  genius  of 
this  world,  inviting  to  the  "  lust  of  the  flesh,  the 
lust  of  the  eyes,  and  to  the  pride  of  life."  There, 
also,  is  the  radiant  form  of  Religion,  inviting  him 
to  the  cross  of  Christ,  to  virtue,  and  to  heaven. 
The  former  dares  not  promise  more  than  occasional 
hours  of  delight,  and  makes  no  pretense  to  heal 
the  springs  of  misery,  which  are  ever  sending 


40  THE  YOUNG  MAN*8   COUNSELOR. 

their  streams  of  sorrow  through  the  life.  The 
latter,  like  Elisha  standing  with  his  cruse  of  salt 
at  the  waters  of  Jericho,  boldly  promises  to  heal 
those  springs,  and  to  convert  the  heart  into  a 
living  fountain  of  tranquil  joy,  capable  of  yielding 
sweet  satisfaction  under  every  variety  of  outward 
circumstance. 

Say,  then,  young  man,  which  is  the  choice  of 
wisdom?  As  a  mere  question  of  advantage  during 
the  present  life,  ought  you  not  to  lay  a  foundation 
of  evangelical  piety  ?  I  appeal  to  the  tribunal  of 
your  reason.  I  demand  the  verdict  of  your  intel- 
lect. To  enforce  that,  I  implore  the  authority  of 
your  conscience.  With  your  reason  and  conscience 
on  the  side  of  religion,  I  beg  you  to  yield  a  sub- 
missive will.  And,  hearken  !  A  higher  voice  than 
mine  supports  this  appeal.  From  Him  whom  the 
"heaven  of  heavens  can  not  contain,"  a  sound, 
"still,  small,"  but  thrilling,  steals  into  every  young 
man's  heart,  saying,  "WiLT  THOU  NOT,  FROM  THIS 

TIME,  CRY  UNTO  ME,  MY  FATHER,  THOU  ART  THE 
GUIDE  OF  MY  YOUTH!" 

Take  hoo<5  how  you  despise  this  appeal  of  your 


THE   CORNER-STONE  OF  A  SUCCESSFUL  LIFE.    41 

Creator.  Look  at  your  life  in  its  relations  to  him 
and  to  eternity.  Contemplate  your  destinies  from 
that  "  hight  which  no  duration  limits ;  where  Hope 
spreads  in  immensity  her  indefatigable  wings; 
where  you  can  feel  within  yourself  a  secret  force, 
which  bears  you  above  all  time,  as  a  light  body 
rises  from  the  depths  of  the  sea.  From  this  hight 
look  into  this  narrow  valley,  where  the  first  term 
of  your  existence  is  to  be  accomplished."  And 
thus,  with  both  worlds  before  you,  come  to  the 
great  decision  to  lay  your  foundation  surely  and 
steadfastly  on  Him  who  is  the  "  Rock  of  Ages." 

To  be  successful  in  life,  to  rise  above  the  com- 
mon herd  of  mankind,  a  young  man  requires  cer- 
tain elements  of  character;  all  of  which  are  at- 
tainable through  the  power  of  religion,  and  many 
of  which  most  young  men  never  will  attain  without 
that  power.  He  must  possess  INTEGRITY,  that  he 
may  win  public  confidence;  INTELLIGENCE,  that  he 
may  command  respect;  INDUSTRY,  that  he  may 
collect  honey  from  the  flowers  of  trade ;  ECONOMY 
and  frugality,  to  preserve  his  gains;  ENERGY,  by 
which  to  surmount  obstacles;  and  TACT,  to  enable 


42  THE   YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

him  to  adapt  himself  to  the  openings  of  Provi- 
dence, and  to  make  him  the  man  for  the  hour  of 
opportunity.  These  qualifications  are,  to  success 
in  life,  as  foundations  of  jasper  to  a  royal  palace. 
Whoever  possesses  them  can  not  be  an  inferior 
man.  To  that  man  who  retains  them,  life  can  not 
be  a  failure.  Nay,  he  must  rise  to  social  superior- 
ity; he  must  win  a  commanding  influence.  And, 
hear  me,  young  man !  These  elements  of  success 
are  all  attainable,  in  a  greater  or  less  degree,  by 
every  youth  who  will  cordially  embrace,  and  faith- 
fully adhere  to,  the  religion  of  Christ;  as  I  will 
endeavor  to  prove,  in  the  succeeding  chapters. 


INTEGRITY   NECESSARY   TO   SUCCESS   IN   LIFE.    43 

CHAPTER  III. 

INTEGRITY   NECESSARY  TO   SUCCESS   IN    LIFE, 

fNTEGrRITY  signifies  incorruptibility,  sound- 
ness of  heart,  uprightness.  A  man  of  integ- 
rity is  always  loyal  to  his  sense  of  right.  His 
adhesion  to  the  principles  of  rectitude  is  so  strong, 
that  nothing  can  break  it.  No  motive  is  suffi- 
ciently powerful  to  move  him  from  the  straight 
line  of  duty.  Money  can  not  purchase  his  consent 
to  a  wrong  action.  Pleasure  can  not  entice  him 
from  the  ways  of  justice.  The  pleadings  of  love, 
the  yearnings  of  friendship,  the  threatenings  of 
enmity,  are  alike  powerless  to  move  his  steady  soul 
from  its  purpose  to  abide  faithful  to  its  convic- 
tions. To  the  wicked  in  high  places,  who  would 
flatter  him  to  turn  aside  from  truth,  for  the  sake 
of  their  favor,  he  indignantly  responds,  "  Shall  I 
Bell  my  principles  for  human  praise  ?  for  that 

1  Wild  wreath  of  air — 
That  flake  of  rainbow,  flying  on  the  highest 
Foam  of  men's  deeds?'  " 


44  THE  YOUNG   MAN*S   COUNSELOR. 

Ever  true  to  his  principles,  his  actions  and  his 
duties  are  as 

"  Consonant  cords  that  shiver  to  one  note." 

If  duty  calls  him  to  rise  up  singly  in  defense  of 
truth,  like  Noah,  preaching  to  a  world  of  sinners, 
he  stands,  in  the  noblest  sublimity  of  moral  char- 
acter, 

"  Like  a  Druid  rock, 

Or  like  a  spire  of  land,  that  stands  apart, 
Cleft  from  the  main." 

If  exposed  to  the  wrath  and  violence  of  ungodly 
men;  if  the  enemies  of  right  raise  threatening 
tempests  about  his  head ;  if  they  pour  forth  floods 
of  enmity  to  wash  him  from  his  high  moral  posi- 
tion, he  remains  unmoved  and  unawed  at  his 
chosen  post: 

"  Standing  like  a  stately  pine, 
Set  in  a  cataract  on  an  island  crag, 
When  storm  is  on  the  hights,  and  right  and  left, 
Sucked  from  the  dark  heart  of  the  long  hills,  roll 
The  torrents  dashed  to  the  vale." 

The  reply  of  Kossuth,  the  renowned  hero  of 
Hungary,  furnishes  a  beautiful  illustration  of  this 


INTEGRITY  NECESSARY  TO   SUCCESS   IN   LIFE.   45 

virtue.  He  had  escaped  the  pursuit  of  the  tri- 
umphant Cossacks,  and  sought  protection  at  the 
hands  of  the  Sultan  of  Turkey.  Safety,  wealth, 
military  command,  were  cheerfully  offered  to  him 
by  the  Sultan,  provided  he  would  renounce  the 
Christian  religion,  and  embrace  the  doctrines  of 
Mohammed.  To  refuse  this  condition  would,  for 
aught  he  knew  to  the  contrary,  be  equivalent  to 
throwing  himself  upon  the  sword  of  Russia,  which 
was  whetted  for  his  destruction.  But,  with  death 
frowning  in  his  face,  the  heroic  Kossuth  nobly 
exclaimed,  "  Welcome,  if  need  be,  the  ax  or  the 
gibbet;  but  curses  on  the  tongue  that  dares  to 
make  to  me  so  infamous  a  proposal  I" 

In  this  fact  you  see  both  the  nature  and  the 
moral  sublimity  of  integrity.  The  soul  of  Kos- 
suth, long  trained  to  a  love  of  truth  and  right, 
revolted,  with  indignation,  from  the  bare  idea  of 
purchasing  his  life  by  the  sacrifice  of  his  con- 
science. To  die  loyal  to  his  sense  of  duty,  how- 
ever cruel  the  mode  of  his  death,  he  regarded  as 
infinitely  preferable  to  life,  honors,  and  wealth, 
with  a  violated  conscience.  This  is  integrity. 


46  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

An  equally-striking  example  is  furnished,  in  th« 
conduct  of  Ulric  Zwingle,  the  illustrious  master- 
spirit of  the  Swiss  Reformation.  The  Pope  had 
given  Zwingle  a  small  pension,  and  his  legate  was 
endeavoring  to  combat  certain  scruples  which  the 
nascent  reformer  indulged  on  the  question  of  re- 
taining it.  The  spirit  of  reform  was  beginning  to 
stir  within  him,  and  a  dim  presentiment  of  his 
ultimate  duty  to  attack  the  Papacy  was  slowly  ris- 
ing in  his  soul.  Hence,  he  wished  to  be  released 
from  all  ties  which  would  hinder  the  freedom  of 
his  great  mind.  But  the  Papal  legate  insisted,  and 
Zwingle  consented  to  retain  it  awhile  longer,  but 
added  these  notable  words  : 

"Do  not  think  that  for  any  money  I  will  sup- 
press a  single  syllable  of  the  truth." 

Noble  Zwingle  !  Glorious  loyalty  to  the  sense 
of  duty  which  not  all  the  wealth  of  the  Vatican 
can  induce  to  surrender  even  a  syllable  of  truth  I 
Young  man,  this,  too,  is  integrity. 

At  the  risk  of  being  too  profuse  in  my  illustra- 
tions of  this  point,  I  will  introduce  yet  another 
and,  perhaps,  more  striking  exhibition  of  this 


INTEGRITY  NECESSARY   TO   SUCCESS  IN   LIFE.   47 

essential  virtue.  The  interest  of  the  circum- 
stances, and  the  hope  that  the  moral  beauty  they 
disclose  may  strengthen  the  young  man's  allegiance 
to  right,  shall  be  my  apology. 

The  Government  of  Scotland  had,  for  genera- 
tions, claimed  a  jurisdiction  over  the  pulpits  of 
the  Scottish  Church,  which  the  latter  could  not 
conscientiously  yield.  A  recent  enforcement  of 
this  ancient  claim,  in  a  particular  church,  followed 
by  abortive  efforts  to  secure  a  reform,  led  several 
of  its  most  celebrated  ministers  to  a  determination 
to  quit  the  assembly,  resign  their  churches,  and 
organize  a  free  Church,  independent  of  all  state 
control.  The  execution  of  this  purpose  involved 
the  sacrifice  of  their  livings,  manses,  and  means 
of  support.  It  would  leave  many  of  them  poor, 
houseless,  and  dependent  on  the  providence  of 
God  alone  for  support.  The  adherents  of  the  state 
sneered  at  this  resolve,  and  said  there  was  no  fear 
that  many  of  them  would  make  such  a  sacrifice  for 
a  mere  scruple  of  conscience.  The  18th  of  May, 
1843,  however,  proved  to  Scotland  and  the  world 
that  the  spirit  of  the  ancient  Scottish  Covenanter 


48  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

yet  lived  in  the  heart  of  her  modern  sons.  Let 
us  view  the  scene  as  it  transpired  on  that  memo- 
rable day,  in  the  city  of  Edinburgh. 

The  gray  old  towers  of  Holyrood  are  alive  with 
the  bustle  and  grandeur  of  reflected  royalty.  The 
narrow  streets  are  crowded  with  dense  masses, 
through  which  the  gorgeous  procession  of  the 
queen's  commissioner  can  scarcely  force  its  way  to 
the  cathedral  church  of  St.  Giles.  The  levee  and 
sermon  past,  the  royal  commissioner  proceeds  to 
St.  Andrew's,  to  meet  the  General  Assembly. 
Amidst  the  anxious  beatings  of  many  hearts,  the 
house  is  called  to  order. 

Prayer  is  next  offered,  and  is  followed  by  a 
brief,  deep  silence.  Then  the  polished  and  classic 
Welsh,  who  is  moderator,  "  his  pure  and  glowing 
spirit  shining  through  his  fragile  body,  like  a  lamp 
through  a  vase  of  alabaster,"  rises  to  his  feet. 
With  a  firm,  unfaltering  voice,  he  utters  a  noble 
protest  against  the  proceedings  of  the  state.  Then 
laying  his  protest  on  the  table,  and  bowing  to  the 
commissioner,  he  walks  toward  the  eastern  door. 
This  movement  raises  the  interest  of  the  assembly 


INTEGRITY   NECESSARY  TO   SUCCESS   IN   LIFE.   49 

to  its  highest  pitch;  for  who  could  say  how  many 
would  abide  true  to  principle  and  right  in  that 
stern  hour  of  trial  ?  Who  will  follow  the  daunt- 
less Welsh?  First,  the  white-haired  Chalmers, 
with  his  "massive  frame  and  lion  port,  springs  to 
his  side."  Another  and  another  of  Scotland's 
most  distinguished  clergy  follow  him,  till  the 
pride  and  flower  of  the  Church  swell  the  gather- 
ing stream.  As  they  pour  out  of  the  church,  "  a 
long-drawn,  sobbing  sigh,  a  suppressed  cheer  of  ad- 
miration and  sympathy,  sweeps  round  the  church," 
from  the  spectators,  who  gaze  in  solemn  wonder  at 
the  sight.  Dismay  and  astonishment  mark  the 
countenances  of  the  royal  commissioner  and  the 
adherents  of  the  crown. 

Outside  of  the  church  the  excitement  is  still 
more  intense.  Vast  masses  have  waited  there  for 
hours,  to  see  if  the  spirit  of  the  old  Covenanter 
yet  lived  in  Scotland.  "  When  will  they  come  ?" 
has  been  asked  a  thousand  times. 

"  They  will  not  come !"  has  been  as  often  an- 
swered back  by  tnose  who  had  no  faith  in  the 
power  of  principle. 

4  -a 


60  THE  YOUNG   MAN*  8   COUNSELOR. 

"  They  will  come  !"  has  been  the  response  of  the 
old  Covenanter  soul. 

At  length  a  door  opens;  a  cry  of  "Here  they 
come  !"  announces  to  the  multitude,  and  to  the 
world,  that  the  Evangelical  Church  of  Scotland  is 
free.  Instantly  the  whole  mass  of  people  is  in 
motion.  Hats  and  handkerchiefs  are  waved  aloft, 
and  "a  shout,  not  loud,  but  deep  and  earnest  —  a 
shout,  the  voice  of  the  heart  rather  than  of  the 
lip  —  bursts  from  the  countless  thousands"  who 
throng  street,  door,  window,  and  even  house-top. 
The  long  agony  is  over.  The  Church  is  safe. 
Strong  men,  who  had  faced  the  roar  of  battle  un- 
moved, are  unstrung,  and  the  big  tears  gush  from 
their  eyes  as  they  murmur,  "Thank  God,  Scotland 
is  free  !"  "  Four  hundred  of  Scotland's  best  min- 
isters, and  as  many  elders,  march  through  that 
yielding  crowd  to  Tanfield  Hall,  which  is  crowded 
to  the  roof  by  eager  spectators.  There  the  tremu- 
lous voice  of  Welsh  leads  in  prayer,  and  the  long- 
pent-up  feelings  of  the  assembly  burst  forth  in 
irrepressible  sobs,  and  tears  of  mingled  sorrow  and 
gladness.  Then  that  multitude  stands  up,  and 


ft 


INTEGRITY  NECESSARY  TO   SUCCESS  IN  LIFE.   51 

from  "  four  thousand  voices  there  ascend  the  high 
and  mournful  strains  of  the  old  Hebrew  faith  and 
fearlessness." 

"  God  is  our  refuge  and  our  strength, 

In  straits  a  present  aid ; 
Therefore,  although  the  earth  remove, 
"We  will  not  be  afraid." 

The  towers  of  the  Cannon  mills  shake  with  the 
thunders  of  their  .melody ;  and  every  heart  is 
nerved  with  holy  fervor  to  lay  down  all  for  the 
cross  and  crown  of  Christ.* 

The  moral  grandeur  of  this  scene  is,  at  least, 
equal  to  any  recorded  facts  in  the  history  of  man. 
It  exhibits  the  moral  beauty  of  integrity.  The 
scene  owes  all  its  sublimity  to  the  fact  that  those 
heroic  ministers  were  sufficiently  loyal  to  their 
sense  of  right  and  duty  to  prefer  the  loss  of  all 
things  to  its  violation.  And,  young  man,  this  is 
the  integrity  I  wish  you  to  attain,  as  a  prime  ele- 
ment of  success  in  life. 

One  of  the  first  effects  of  integrity  is  to  secure 

°See  Hetherington's  History  of  the  Church  of  Scotland. 

- ' 


62  THE  YOUNQ   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

to  its  possessor  the  confidence,  of  society.  To  have 
the  confidence  of  others  is  to  have  influence  over 
them;  for  men  readily  yield  themselves  to  tho 
guidance  of  those  in  whom  they  confide.  Hence, 
a  reputation  for  lofty  integrity  is  better  capital  than 
gold ;  it  is  more  persuasive  than  eloquence ;  it  is 
more  powerful  than  the  sword.  A  remarkable  ex- 
ample of  its  influence  is  furnished  in  the  rivalry 
of  Robespierre  and  Mirabeau,  during  the  first 
epochs  of  the  French  Revolution. 

No  two  men,  perhaps,  ever  presented  greater 
contrasts  of  person,  ability,  and  character  than 
these  politicians.  Mirabeau  was  of  patrician  blood; 
Robespierre  an  obscure  plebeian.  Mirabeau  had 
the  eye  of  an  eagle,  the  port  of  a  lion,  the  energy 
of  a  whirlwind,  a  voice  of  thunder,  an  eloquence 
which  stirred  men's  souls,  commanded  the  assent 
of  his  friends,  and  terrified  his  adversaries.  Robe- 
spierre's eyes  flashed  no  fire,  his  manner  was  feeble 
and  uncouth,  his  voice  weak  and  broken,  his  ora- 
tory was  contemptible  and  usually  passionless.  Be- 
tween such  men,  one  would  think,  there  could  be 
no  rivalry;  for  how  could  Robespierre,  vain  as  he 


INTEGRITY  NECESSARY   TO   SUCCESS   IN   LIFE.    53 

was,  dare  to  compete  for  influence  with  Mirabeau  ? 
But  he  did  dare;  and  that,  too,  with  success,  as 
will  appear  by  the  following  scene,  which  took 
place  in  the  celebrated  Revolutionary  Club  of  the 
Jacobins,  where  hitherto  Mirabeau  had  reigned 
supreme. 

Robespierre  was  speaking,  one  night,  in  the 
Club,  against  a  decree,  which,  through  Mirabeau' s 
influence,  had  that  day  passed  the  National  Assem- 
bly. Though  cold  and  passionless  in  his  manner, 
he,  nevertheless,  brought  such  severe  logic  to  bear 
against  the  principles  of  the  decree,  that  the  club 
greeted  him  with  thunders  of  applause.  Mirabeau 
is  alarmed.  He  sits  uneasy  in  his  presidential 
chair,  and  at  length  calls  Robespierre  to  order, 
Baying,  "No  one  must  speak  against  a  decree 
already  passed  by  the  Assembly !" 

This  the  Club  will  not  endure.  Loud  shouts  for 
Robespierre  to  proceed  resound  through  the  hall. 
Mirabeau  mounts  his  chair,  and  aifirming  that  tho 
attack  on  the  decree  was  intended  to  cover  an 
assault  upon  himself,  appeals  to  his  friends,  crying, 
"Help,  colleagues  !  let  all  my  friends  surround  me." 


54  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

This  was  manifestly  an  appeal  to  his  influence 
over  the  Club.  A  few  months  before,  it  would 
have  brought  a  rampart  of  some  six  hundred  hu- 
man breasts  around  him.  But  that  night  only 
thirty  responded  to  his  call.  It  was  obvious  that 
his  influence  had  passed  over  to  Robespierre. 

What  was  the  secret  of  this  change  ?  Let  the 
young  man  note  it  carefully.  Mirabeau  had  ac- 
cepted royal  gold;  his  political  integrity  had  be- 
come suspected;  and  all  his  high  qualifications 
were  growing  impotent.  Robespierre  —  cold,  self- 
ish, calculating,  repulsive  as  he  was  —  had  con- 
trived to  acquire  a  reputation  for  incorruptibility. 
Men  believed  that  no  price  could  purchase  his  alle- 
giance to  republican  principles.  Hence,  they  freely 
surrendered  themselves  up  to  his  influence,  till 
they  placed  him  at  the  head  of  that  fearful  and 
barbarous  revolution,  proving  that,  even  among 
unprincipled  men,  there  is  a  respect  for  integrity 
which  molds  and  leads  them. 

Let  me  exhort  you,  therefore,  young  man,  to 
cultivate  the  loftiest  integrity,  even  in  connection 
with  the  smallest  matters.  Are  you  a  clerk  ?  See 


INTEGRITY  NECESSARY  TO   SUCCESS  IN   LIFE.    55 

to  it  that  your  minutest  entries  are  strictly  correct; 
that  you  never  appropriate  one  cent  of  your  em- 
ployer's money  or  property  to  your  own  uses.  Deal 
with  honorable  exactness  toward  all  who  trade  at 
your  store  or  counting-room.  Eschew  all  business 
lies,  in  selling  goods.  If,  in  measuring  or  weigh- 
ing an  article,  you  discern  defects  which  lessen  its 
value,  boldly  make  them  known.  Do  not  permit  a 
dishonest  employer  to  compel  you  to  be  his  instru- 
ment —  his  tool  for  doing  wrong.  Let  him  dis- 
tinctly understand  that  you  do  not  hesitate  be- 
tween dishonor  and  dismissal.  Prove,  if  need  be, 
by  the  loss  of  your  situation,  that  you  prefer  an 
honest  crust  to  a  dishonest  banquet.  If  you  are  a 
mechanic,  a  farmer,  or  an  artist,  prosecute  your 
daily  tasks  with  the  same  careful  diligence  in  the 
absence  as  in  the  presence  of  your  employer;  thus 
proving  that  you  are  "no  eye-servant,"  no  mere 
"  man-pleaser,"  but  a  conscientious  and  dignified 
young  man ;  doing  right,  not  for  reputation's  sake, 
but  because  you  love  it,  and  from  a  sense  of  obli- 
gation to  almighty  God. 

It   is  by  small  things  that  you  are  to  acquire  a 


56  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

habit  of  integrity.  The  disposition  of  mankind  is 
to  despise  the  little  incidents  of  every-day  life. 
This  is  a  lamentable  mistake,  since  nothing  in  t-his 
life  is  really  small.  Every  event  is  "great,  for 
good  or  for  evil ;  because  of  the  unfathomable  mys- 
teries that  lie  shrouded  in  the  growth  on  earth  of 
an  immortal  soul."  It  is  only  by  exercising  your 
principles  in  the  daily  tests  of  ordinary  life  that 
you  can  acquire  power  to  stand  in  an  extraordinary 
and  truly-difficult  position.  It  was  only  by  habit- 
ual fidelity  to  his  sense  of  duty  that  Luther  01 
Zwingle  acquired  strength  to  withstand  the  flatter- 
ing solicitations  of  the  Pope.  None  but  a  mind 
trained,  through  daily  tests,  to  an  instinctive 
choice  of  right,  could,  like  Kossuth,  so  promptly 
and  unhesitatingly  accept  the  gibbet  or  ax  as  the 
price  of  integrity.  Any  other  mind  would  have 
paused,  hesitated,  employed  mental  casuistry,  and 
looked,  at  least,  after  some  excuse  for  yielding  a 
principle  and  saving  life.  But  Kcssuth's  mind 
settled  the  question  as  soon  as  it  was  stated;  and 
thus  showed  itself  loyal,  from  long  habit,  to  virtue 
and  to  truth.  Be  faithful,  therefore,  in  that  which 


INTEGRITY   NECESSARY  TO   SUCCESS   IN   LIFE.    57 

is  least ;  thereby  acquiring  the  power  to  be  faithful 
in  that  which  is  great,  should  you  ever  be  called  to 
such  a  trial  of  your  principles. 

Let  us  enter  yonder  counting-room.  A  clerk  is 
lusy  at  the  writing-desk.  The  merchant  sits  con- 
versing at  the  table  with  a  brother  merchant.  The 
porter  calls  the  clerk  from  the  counting-room.  As 
the  door  closes,  the  visiting  merchant  inquires  of 
his  friend, 

"Is  that  your  chief  clerk,  Mr.  Grey?" 

"  Yes,  sir.  He  is  at  the  head  of  my  establish- 
ment," replies  the  merchant. 

"  Indeed !  Are  you  not  afraid  to  intrust  so 
young  a  man  with  so  high  a  responsibility  ?" 

Mr.  Grey  smiles,  and  answers  : 

"No,  sir.  That  young  man  has  my  most  im- 
plicit confidence.  He  has  been  with  me  from  his 
boyhood.  I  have  never  known  him  to  betray  a 
single  trust.  He  identifies  his  interests  with  mine. 
He  abhors  the  idea  of  mercantile  dishonesty  in 
every  aspect;  and  I  would  intrust  him  with  un- 
counted gold." 

"  You  are  fortunate  to  have  such  a  clerk.     Do- 


58  THE   YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

pend  upon  it,  there  are  few  such  in  our  city," 
replies  the  merchant's  friend,  as,  deeply  musing, 
he  retires  from  the  counting-room.  The  conversa- 
tion has  strongly  impressed  his  mind.  He  con- 
ducts an  extensive  business ;  and,  being  somewhat 
advanced  in  life,  is  desirous  of  finding  a  young 
partner.  The  high  commendation  of  Mr.  Grey's 
clerk  has  fixed  his  attention.  He  resolves  to  ob- 
serve him,  and,  at  a  suitable  opportunity,  if  satis- 
fied, secure  his  services.  The  result  is,  that  the 
young  clerk  becomes  first  his  partner,  and  then 
the  owner  of  the  business;  thus  securing  profit 
and  advancement  as  the  reward  of  his  integrity. 

Now,  I  do  not  say  that  every  young  man  of 
sound  principles  will  be  equally  fortunate,  because 
capacity,  address,  and  other  elements,  must  be 
combined,  to  insure  such  marked  and  signal  ele- 
vation. Yet  I  do  not  hesitate  to  affirm  that  every 
young  man  who  resembles  that  clerk  in  his  upright- 
ness of  character  may  be  sure  of  rising  to  a  loftier 
hight  in  his  profession,  and  to  more  enduring  for- 
tune, than  if  his  principles  are  loose,  and  his  fidel- 
ity open  to  suspicion. 


INTEGRITY   NECESSAHY   TO    SUCCESS   IN   LIFE.    59 

In  some  of  the  European  states  scientific  men 
have  recommended  the  insertion  of  lightning-rods 
in  quarries,  for  the  purpose  of  attracting  the  elec- 
tric fluid  during  a  thunder-storm,  and  thereby 
blasting  the  rock.  The  relation  of  those  rods  to 
the  splitting  of  a  stone  fitly  illustrates  the  influ- 
ence of  dishonesty,  trickery  in  trade,  or  overreach- 
ing in  any  form,  upon  the  fame  and  fortune  of  the 
clerk  or  merchant  who  condescends  to  its  practice. 
Every  such  violation  of  the  laws  of  right  serves 
as  a  conductor  to  the  retributive  providences  of 
the  Creator,  which,  sooner  or  later,  shiver  the  fab- 
ric built  up  by  fraud  into  fragments.  The  late 
Gideon  Lee,  a  celebrated  American  merchant,  and 
an  honest  man,  was  accustomed  to  remark,  that 
though  "a  man  may  gain  a  temporary  advantage 
by  selling  an  article  for  more  than  it  is  worth,  yet 
the  effect  must  recoil  upon  himself  in  the  shape 
of  bad  debts  and  increased  risk."  The  following 
fact,  in  his  history,  is  given  to  illustrate  his  opin- 
ion: 

A  merchant  boasted,  one  day,  in  Mr.  Lee's  office, 
of  having  gained  a  great  advantage  over  a  neigh- 


60  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

bor;  and  then,  with  the  utmost  barefacedness, 
added,  "To-day  I  have  obtained  an  advantage  over 
you,  too,  Mr.  Lee." 

"  Well,"  replied  the  honest  man,  "  that  may  be ; 
but  if  you  will  promise  never  to  enter  my  office 
again,  I  will  give  you  that  bundle  of  goat-skins." 

The  unprincipled  trader  was  so  devoid  of  all  self- 
respect,  that  he  made  the  promise,  took  the  skins, 
and  for  fifteen  years  did  not  cross  Mr.  Lee's  thresh- 
old. At  the  expiration  of  that  period,  however,  he 
walked  into  his  office.  Mr.  Lee  instantly  recog- 
nized him,  and  said,  "You  have  violated  your 
word;  pay  me  for  the  goat-skins  !" 

"  0,"  replied  the  man,  in  sorrowful  tones,  "  I 
have  been  very  unfortunate  since  I  saw  you,  and 
am  quite  poor !" 

"Yes,"  said  the  man  of  probity;  "and  you  will 
always  be  so;  that  miserable  desire  to  overreach 
others  must  keep  you  so."* 

Thus  you  may  see  that  the  providence  of  God 
has  joined  ultimate  adversity  to  all  violations  of 

0  Quoted  in  Hunt's  Merchants'  Magazine. 


INTEGRITY   NECESSARY  TO   SUCCESS    IN   LIFE.    61 

the  law  of  justice,  just  as  he  has  united  honor  and 
well-being  with  integrity.  The  motive,  therefore, 
is  twofold — one  of  fear  and  another  of  attraction. 
Honor,  advancement,  well-being,  with  their  rich 
emoluments,  stand  inviting  you  to  the  ways  of 
right;  while  disgrace,  debasement,  and  ruin  stand 
frowning  in  the  paths  of  deceit  and  dishonesty. 
God  himself  speaks  to  you,  saying :  "  The  house 
of  the.wicked  shall  be  overthrown  ;  but  the  tabernacle 
of  the  UPRIGHT  shall  flourish." 

You  are,  doubtless,  convinced  of  the  beauty,  the 
benefit,  the  desirableness,  of  this  vital  element  of 
genuine  success  in  life.  Perhaps  you  have  in- 
wardly resolved  to  cultivate  it.  Animated  by  the 
examples,  pleased  with  the  beauty,  attracted  by  the 
benefits  of  integrity,  you  have  already  said,  in 
your  heart,  "I  will  diligently  cultivate  this  sub- 
lime virtue.  With  Kossuth,  Zwingle,  and  those 
noble  Scotsmen,  I  will  hold  my  integrity  dearer 
than  money,  honor,  or  life." 

This  is  a  noble  resolve ;  but  how  will  you  keep 
it?  Whence,  amid  the  contagion  of  evil  example, 
tne  lure  of  the  apparent  rewards  of  deceit,  and  the 


62  THE  YOUNQ  MAN'S  COUNSELOR, 

insatiable  desires  of  your  own  fiery  heart,  which 
will  soon  be  as  eager,  in  the  strife  for  fame  and 
fortune,  as  Hotspur  in  the  battle-field,  whence  will 
you  gain  strength  to  resist  all  these  temptations? 
By  what  aids  do  you  intend  to  remain  conqueror  on 
a  field  where  millions  have  fallen  ?  Consider  well 
the  question  of  Jesus,  who  asks,  "  What  king) 
going  to  make  war  against  another  king,  sitteth  not 
down  first  and  consulteth  whether  he  be  able  with  ten 
thousand,  to  meet  him  that  cometh  against  him  with 
tiventy  thousand?"  So  you,  counting  the  difficul- 
ties surrounding  a  young  combatant  after  an  up- 
right reputation,  should  -seriously  ask,  "Have  I 
strength  to  overcome  these  obstacles  ?" 

Now,  I  will  not  deny  the  obvious  fact,  that  a  few 
persons  have  won  a  high  mercantile  reputation 
without  the  aid  of  experimental  religion.  Pride 
of  birth,  of  character,  of  education,  a  strong  in- 
stinctive admiration  of  mercantile  justice,  freedom 
from  the  pressure  of  strong  solicitation,  with  other 
causes,  may  have  sustained  them  under  their  cir- 
cumstances; but  I  contend  that  no  young  man  can 
rationally  hope  to  pass  the  ordeals  of  life  in  safety, 


INTEGRITY   NECESSARY  TO   SUCCESS  IN   LIFE.    68 

unless  his  outward  virtues  derive  vitality  and  vigor 
from  an  inward  religious  life.  To  be  perennial,  the 
stream  must  proceed  from  a  living  spring;  to  be 
fruitful,  the  tree  must  spread  its  roots  in  a  con- 
genial soil :  so,  to  insure  the  possession  of  upright- 
ness through  the  manifold  trials  of  human  life,  the 
soul  of  a  man  must  he  in  harmony  with  its  Cre- 
ator-—through  faith  in  Him,  it  must  derive 
strength  to  resist  wrong,  to  desire  and  to  will 
right,  when  standing  in  the  plunging  torrent  of 
evil  influences  which  is  ever  dashing  down  the 
highways  of  trade.  Greatly-good  men  are  always 
"  like  solitary  towers  in  the  city  of  God ;  and  se- 
cret passages,  running  deep  beneath  external  na- 
ture, give  their  thoughts  intercourse  with  higher 
intelligences,  which  strengthens  and  controls 
them;"  and  this  secret  intercourse  with  God  is 
necessary  for  you,  if  to  be  greatly  good  is  your  aim 
and  purpose. 

Religion  never  fails  to  make  its  possessor  a  man 
of  integrity.  Its'  primary  idea  is  a  surrender  of 
the  man,  soul  and  body,  to  God  and  to  his  teach- 
ings. A  deliberate  casting  off  of  any  one  moral 


64  THE   YOUNG   MAN'S   COUN8ELOE. 

principle,  known  to  be  a  Divine  precept,  is  an  act 
of  apostasy  from  religion.  It  is  a  disavowal  of  the 
previous  act  of  surrender,  a  violation  of  the  sacred 
covenant.  Hence,  religion  and  integrity  are  an 
inseparable  as  a  cause  and  its  sequence.  To  em 
brace  the  former  is,  of  necessity,  to  secure  the 
latter.  To  yield  fully  to  the  indwelling  Spirit, 
who  chooses  the  religious  heart  for  his  temple,  is 
to  be  in  a  state  where  the  loftiest  and  sublimest  in- 
tegrity is  "spontaneous  and  inevitable,  the  out- 
ward blossoming  and  fruitfulness  ,of  a  heavenly 
life.  It  is  like  the  skylark's  hymn,  the  violet's 
fragrance,  the  breath  of  the  sweet  south,  the  morn- 
ing star's  sweet  effulgence.  The  soul  obeys  the  de- 
sires of  her  divine  Lord  with  the  ineffable  delight, 
tenderness,  and  constancy  of  the  bride."* 

Keligion  should,  therefore,  be  your  first  object 
of  pursuit,  if  you  desire  to  wear  the  ornament  of 
an  upright  character.  Place  yourself  in  the  hands 
of  Jesus  Christ.  Yield  your  spirit,  as  an  instru- 
ment of  power,  to  the  touch  of  his  fingers,  and 

0  Rev.  T.  L.  Harris. 


INTEGRITY  NECESSARY  TO   SUCCESS  IN  LIFE.   65 

suffer  him  to  call  forth  its  delightful  harmonies. 
Let  his  power  be  your  dependence;  his  grace  your 
strength.  Thus  will  your  moral  sense  be  keen, 
clear,  sensitive;  your  moral  power,  equal  to  the 
most  powerful  tests;  your  integrity,  of  the  purest 
character;  and  your  success  in  life  greatly  pro- 
moted. 

5 


66  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

INTELLIGENCE  AN  ELEMENT  OF  SUCCESS  IN  LIFE. 

Y7  THINK  it  is  the  Germans  who  have  a  pretty 
j[4  legend  of  a  gentleman  for  whom  some  enamored 
fairy  wrought  a  precious  talisman,  which  had  the 
power  to  attract  all  persons  who  came  near  the 
wearer  to  himself.  The  charm  wrought  power- 
fully on  the  companions  of  the  fortunate  nobleman, 
and  he  was  loved  with  wondrous  affection  by  a 
large  circle  of  admiring  friends. 

If  such  a  talisman  were  attainable  at  the  cost 
of  much  labor,  suffering,  and  even  of  danger, 
many  a  young  man  would  seek  it  with  incredible 
industry.  His  imagination  would  be  charmed  by 
the  idea.  He  would  be  ready  to  attempt  the  as- 
cent of  the  Andes,  or  the  exploration  of  the 
dreary  realms  of  the  ice  king  around  the  poles. 

But  when  that  same  young  man  is  told  that, 
unless  neutralized  by  moral  deficiencies,  knowledge 
is  really  a  precious  talisman,  commanding  the 


INTELLIGENCE   AN   ELEMENT  OF   SUCCESS.       67 

respect  and.  influencing  the  opinions  and  conduct 
of  all  minds  within  his  sphere  of  action,  elevating 
its  possessor  to  influence,  to  honor,  and,  possibly, 
to  fortune,  he  turns  away  with  apathy,  perhaps 
with  scorn.  He  disdains  mental  toil.  However 
physically  industrious  he  may  be,  he  is  intellectu- 
ally too  lazy  to  read,  reflect,  and  study.  Books 
are  the  objects  of  his  fixed  dislike.  He  would  be 
delighted  to  wield  a  commanding  influence,  to 
make  a  deep  mark  in  the  world;  but  he  is  too 
slothful,  too  sensuous  to  prosecute  the  studies 
which,  by  expanding,  strengthening,  and  develop- 
ing the  intellect,  lead  to  high  achievements  and 
eminence.  He  prefers  to  waste  his  leisure  houra 
in  idle  lounging,  in  frivolous  amusement,  in  un- 
profitable companionships.  What  is  the  conse- 
quence? It  requires  no  prophetic  afflatus  to  pre- 
dict that  such  a  young  man  will  spend  his  days  in 
comparative  obscurity;  that  on  his 

"  Grassy  grave 

The  men  of  future  times  will  careless  tread 
And  read  his  name  upon  the  sculptured  stone; 
Nor  will  the  sound,  familiar  to  their  ears, 
Recall  his  vanished  memory." 


68  THE   YOUNG   MAN*  8   COUNSELOR. 

The  mind  is  the  glory  of  the  man.  The  power 
of  the  countenance  to  attract  depends  more  on 
the  thoughtfulness  of  the  soul  than  upon  its  con- 
formity to  the  laws  of  beauty.  The  utmost  ele- 
gance of  physical  formation,  the  most  lovely  and 
delicately-chiseled  features,  unless  accompanied  oy 
high  intellectual  expression,  cease  to  please,  after 
they  become  familiar,  while  "  dignity  robes  the 
man  who  is  filled  with  a  lofty  thought,"  notwith- 
standing the  symmetry  of  his  features  may  be 
imperfect,  and  the  proportions  of  his  form  une- 
qual; and,  seeing  how  much  of  success  in  life 
often  depends  upon  outwa'rd  impressions,  it  is  im- 
portant to  a  young  man  to  robe  himself  in  the 
attractive  dignity  of  thought. 

Next  to  moral  worth,  no  possession  is  so  pro- 
ductive of  real  influence  as  a  highly-cultivated 
intellect.  Wealth,  birth,  and  official  station  may 
and  do  secure  to  their  possessors  an  external,  su- 
perficial courtesy;  but  they  never  did  and  they 
never  can  command  the  reverence  of  the  heart. 
Fear  of  being  injured  by  power,  and  hope  of  being 
benefited  by  wealth,  induce  men  to  offer  the  in- 


INTELLIGENCE   AN   ELEMENT   OP   SUCCESS.       69 

cense  of  servility  at  the  shrines  of  mammon ;  but 
it  is  only  to  the  man  of  large  and  noble  soul,  to 
Mm  who  blends  a  cultivated  niind  with  an  upright 
heart,  that  men  yield  the  tribute  of  deep  and 
genuine  respect.  Mental  superiority  has  often 
commanded  the  friendship  of  courts  and  kings. 
It  has  elevated  the  plebeian  above  the  patrician. 
What  star  ever  shone  with  purer  light,  or  com- 
manded more  admiration,  in  the  brilliant  court  of 
France,  than  the  plain,  republican,  but  cultivated, 
Benjamin  Franklin?  Who  ever  rose  to  higher 
influence  in  the  political  circles  of  proud  Eng- 
land than  Cromwell,  Eldon,  Burke,  Canning,  and 
Brougham  ?  To  what  did  they  owe  their  vast 
influence  but  to  great  intellectual  power,  developed 
by  slow  and  toilsome  cultivation  ?  Is  the  young 
man  ambitious  of  high  success  in  life?  Does  he 
aspire  to  rival  great  names  ?  Then,  let  him  dili- 
gently cultivate  his  intellect. 

Yonder,  on  the  calm,  moonlit  sea,  gliding  in 
eolemn  majesty  over  the  unruffled  waters,  is  a 
splendid  ship.  Among  the  dark  forms  upon  her 
deck  may  be  discerned  a  pale-faced  boy,  some  six- 


70  TUE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

teen  summers  old.  He  is  leaning  over  the  bul 
warks,  absorbed  in  a  dreamy  reverie.  His  imagina- 
tion is  traversing  the  future  of  his  career.  Filled 
with  the  gay  illusions  of  hope,  he  peoples  the  years 
to  come  with  images  of  success.  He  beholds  him- 
self rising  from  post  to  post  in  his  dangerous  pro- 
fession, till  he  fancies  himself  the  commander  of  a 
great  fleet.  He  wins  brilliant  victories;  wealth, 
honors,  fame  surround  him.  He  is  a  great  man. 
His  name  is  in  the  mouth  of  the  world.  There  is 
a  circle  of  glory  round  his  brow.  Filled  with  the 
idea,  he  starts.  His  young  heart  heaving  with 
great  purposes,  his  eyes  gleaming  with  the  fire  of 
his  enkindled  soul,  his  slender  form  expanding  to 
its  utmost  hight,  and  his  lips  moving  with  energy, 
he  paces  the  silent  deck,  exclaiming,  "I  will  be  a 
hero;  and,  confiding  in  Providence,  I  will  brave 
every  danger." 

Such  was  the  romantic  dream  'of  young  Horatio 
Nelson,  afterward  the  hero  of  the  Nile,  the  victor 
of  Trafalgar,  and  the  greatest  naval  commander  in 
the  world.  And  what  young  man  has  not  had  im- 
aginings equally  romantic?  Where  is  the  poor 


INTELLIGENCE   AN   ELEMENT   OP   SUCCESS.       71 

suilor-boy  who  has  not  dreamed  of  glory  and  great- 
ness? What  young  law  student  has  not  seen  in 
himself  a  future  Littleton,  Coke,  or  Story  ?  Where 
is  the  printer's  apprentice  who  has  not  intended  to 
be  a  Franklin  ?  What  young  mechanic  has  not,  in 
fancy,  written  his  name  beside  the  names  of  Ark- 
wright,  Fulton,  or  Rumford  ?  What  boyish  artist 
has  not,  in  imagination,  rivaled  Raphael  or  Michael 
Angelo  ?  What  youthful  orator  has  not  gathered 
the  glory  of  Burke,  Chatham,  or  Patrick  Henry 
around  his  own  name  ?  Nay.  There  never  was  a 
young  man  of  any  advantages  who  did  not  rise  to 
eminent  success,  in  his  hours  of  reverie.  For, 
youth  is  the  period  of  dreams,  in  which  Queen 
Mab,  with  her  fairy  crew,  holds  undisputed  reign 
over  the  imagination,  and  revels  at  will  in  the 
hall  of  fancy,  in  the  palace  of  the  soul. 

But  why,  since  all  dream  of  greatness,  do  so  few 
attain  it?  Why  stand  Nelson,  Story,  Fulton, 
Burke,  etc.,  alone,  in  the  realization  of  their  im- 
aginings, among  ten  thousand  of  their  peers,  whose 
early  dreams  were  as  bright  and  as  vivid  as  their 
own?  Why  do  so  few  young  men  distinguish 


72  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

themselves,  out  of  the  many  whose  hopes,  purposes, 
and  resolves  are  as  radiant  as  the  colors  of  the 
rainbow? 

The  answer  is  obvious.  Young  men  are  not 
willing  to  devote  themselves  to  that  process  of  slow, 
toilsome  self-culture,  which  is  the  price  of  great 
success.  Could  they  soar  to  eminence  on  the  lazy 
wings  of  genius,  the  world  would  be  filled  with 
great  men.  But  this  can  never  be;  for  what- 
ever aptitude  for  particular  pursuits  nature  may  do- 
nate to  her  favorite  children,  she  conducts  none 
but  the  laborious  and  the  studious  to  distinction. 
Cicero  and  Demosthenes,  those  unrivaled  orators 
of  antiquity,  were  diligent  students.  Sir  William 
Jones,  the  greatest  of  oriental  scholars;  Newton, 
the  first  of  philosphers;  Burke,  the  chief  of  mod- 
ern orators;  Michael  Angelo,  the  model  of  artists; 
Haydn  and  Handel,  those  peerless  masters  of  the 
musical  art;  John  Quincy  Adams,  the  diplomatist 
and  statesman  ;  all  mounted  the  throne  of  their  fame 
step  by  step.  Their  glory  gathered  around  them 
by  degrees.  Each  added  ray  was  the  result  of  in- 
tense application.  It  was  not  genius;  so  much  as 


INTELLIGENCE  AN  ELEMENT  OP  SUCCESS.   73 

GENIUS  SEDULOUSLY  CULTIVATED,  that  enabled 
them  to  write  their  names  so  high  on  the  pillar 
of  fame.  Great  men  have  ever  been  men  of 
thought,  as  well  as  men  of  action.  As  the  mag- 
nificent river,  rolling  in  the  pride  of  its  mighty 
waters,  owes  its  greatness  to  the  hidden  springs 
of  the  mountain  nook,  so  does  the  wide-sweeping 
influence  of  distinguished  men  date  its  origin  from 
hours  of  privacy,  resolutely  employed  in  efforts 
after  self-development.  The  invisible  spring  of 
self-culture  is  the  source  of  every  great  achieve- 
ment. 

Away,  then,  young  man,  with  all  dreams  of  su- 
periority, unless  you  are  determined  to  dig  after 
knowledge  as  men  search  for  concealed  gold.  If 
you  lack  the  resolution,  the  manly  strength  of  pur- 
pose, needed  to  bind  you  to  reading,  reflection,  and 
study,  you  may  bid  adieu  to  all  hope  of  marked 
success.  Your  destiny  is  settled.  You  will  dwell 
in  ignoble  nothingness,  far  down  the  vale  of  ob- 
scurity. Your  name  will  be  "writ  in  water." 

Yet,  why  need  you  surrender  all  your  cherished 
hopes  of  distinction  ?  The  assured  fact  that  the 


74  THE  YOUNQ  MAN7  8  COUNSELOR. 

great  mass  of  the  young  men  of  your  age  will  spend 
their  youth  in  frivolity  and  self-neglect,  gives  the 
individual  who  is  determined  to  be  a  fully-devel- 
oped man  the  greater  certainty  of  rising  above  his 
peers.  Kesolve,  therefore,  to  act  a  part  worthy  of 
that  intellect  with  which  God  has  endowed  you ! 
Dare  to  contend  for  the  palm  of  superiority ! 

Success  is  certain,  if  you  do  your  best ;  as  says 
an  eccentric  writer,  "  Show  me  the  man  who  has 
made  the  most  of  his  faculties,  and  I  will  show  you 
a  being  sublimated  to  the  hight  of  the  angelic 
nature."  This  is  strongly  expressed;  but  it  never- 
theless contains  a  great  truth.  Every  man  has  in 
himself  the  seminal  principle  of  great  excellency. 
The  reader  has  it,  and  he  may  develop  it  by  culti- 
vation, if  he  will  TRY. 

Perhaps  you  are  what  the  world  calls  poor 
What  of  that?  Most  of  the  men  whose  names 
are  as  household  words,  were  also  the  children  of 
poverty.  Captain  Cook,  the  circumnavigator  of 
the  globe,  was  born  in  a  mud-hut,  and  started  in 
life  as  a  cabin-boy.  Nelson,  England's  greatest 
admiral,  was  only  a  coxswain  in  his  youth.  Lord 


INTELLIGENCE  AN  ELEMENT  OF  SUCCESS.   75 

Eldon,  who  sat  on  the  woolsack,  in  the  British  Par- 
liament, for  nearly  half  a  century,  was  the  son  of 
a  coal-merchant.  Franklin,  the  philosopher,  di- 
plomatist, and  statesman,  was  but  a  poor  printer's 
ooy,  whose  highest  luxury,  at  one  time,  was  only  a 
penny  roll,  eaten  in  the  streets  of  Philadelphia. 
Ferguson,  the  profound  philosopher,  was  the  son 
of  a  half-starved  weaver.  Heyne,  the  renowned 
German  scholiast,  was  born  in  a  poor  peasant's  cot. 
Burns,  the  bard  of  Scotland,  ate  the  coarse  bread 
of  labor.  The  lamented  Kirke  White,. the  youthful 
poet,  was  the  son  of  a  butcher.  Whitefield,  the 
most  renowned  of  pulpit  orators,  was  the  son  of  a 
tavern-keeper.  John  Wesley,  the  greatest  eccle- 
siastical legislator  of  his  age,  was  the  son  of  a 
poor  village  vicar,  whose  scanty  income  scarce  sus- 
tained his  numerous  children.  Johnson,  Gold- 
smith, Coleridge,  Keats,  Crabbe,  all  knew  the 
pressure  of  limited  circumstances;  yet  they  made 
themselves  a  name.  They,  with  many  others,  have 
demonstrated  that  limited  means,  or  poverty  even, 
is  no  insuperable  obstacle  to  success.  Their  his- 
tory shows  that  the  most  stupendous  difficulties 


76  THE  YOUNQ   MAN'S  COUNSELOE. 

may  be  defied  and  conquered  by  steadily  and  per- 
severingly  cultivating  the  mind,  and  thus  fitting  it 
beforehand  for  the  openings  of  Divine  providence. 
Poesy  never  sang  more  truly  than  in  the  following 
beautiful  lines  of  Longfellow,  in  his  "Psalm  of 
Life:" 

"Lives  of  great  men  all  remind  us 

We  can  make  our  lives  sublime, 
And,  departing,  leave  behind  us 
Footprints  on  the  sands  of  time; 

Footprints  that,  perhaps,  another, 
Sailing  o'er  life's  solemn  main, 

A  forlorn  and  shipwrecked  brother, 
Seeing,  may  take  heart  again." 

Up,  then,  young  man,  and  gird  yourself  for  the 
work  of  self-cultivation  !  Set  a  high  price  on  your 
leisure  moments.  They  are  sands  of  precious  gold. 
Properly  expended,  they  will  procure  for  you  a 
stock  of  great  thoughts — thoughts  that  will  fill, 
stir,  invigorate,  and  expand  your  soul.  Seize  also 
on  the  unparalleled  aids  furnished  by  steam  and 
type,  in  this  unequaled  age.  The  great  thoughts 
of  great  men  are  now  to  be  procured  at  prices 
almost  nominal;  therefore,  you  can  easily  collect  a 
library  of  choice  authors.  Public  lectures  are  also 


INTELLIGENCE  AN  ELEMENT  OP  SUCCESS.      77 

abundant  in  our  large  cities.  Attend  the  best  of 
them,  and  carefully  treasure  up  their  richest  ideas. 
But,  above  all,  learn  to  reflect  even  more  than  you 
read.  Reading  is  to  the  inind  what  eating  is  to  the 
body,  and  reflection  is  similar  to  digestion.  To  eat 
without  giving  nature  time  to  assimilate  the  food 
to  herself  by  the  slower  process  of  digestion,  is  to 
deprive  her  first  of  health,  and  then  of  life;  so,  to 
cram  the  intellect  by  reading,  without  due  reflec- 
tion, is  to  weaken  and  paralyze  the  mind.  He 
who  reads  thus,  has  "his  perceptions  dazzled  and 
confused  by  the  multitude  of  images  presented  to 
them;  and  this  because  he  has  not  the  faculty  of 
pausing  at  every  point  of  interest — of  weighing, 
searching,  and  questioning — of  arbitrating  between 
truth  and  the  author — of  improving  hints  and  veri- 
fying conclusions.  Without  thought,  books  are  the 
sepulchers  of  the  soul.  They  not  only  immure  it; 
but,  like  thieves  in  the  candle,  while  they  obscure 
its  light,  they  consume  the  bodily  substance,  and 
so  hasten  its  dissolution."*  But  let  thought  and 

°  Self-formation. 


78  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

reading  go  hand  in  hand,  and  the  intellect  will 
rapidly  increase  in  strength  and  in  gifts.  Its  pos- 
sessor will  rise  in  character,  in  potentiality,  in  pos* 
itive  influence.  His  success,  his  moral  qualities 
being  equal,  will  be  assured. 

But  here  I  have  reached  a  point  of  the  highest 
importance  to  every  young  man ;  and  that  point  is; 
the  necessity  of  religion  to  give  right  direction  to 
the  cultivated  intellect.  Mental  power  alone  is 
not  a  guarantee  of  innocent  and  virtuous  superior- 
ity. A  life  of  study  gave  the  philosophic  Bacon 
power  and  renown ;  but  the  absence  of  religious 
principle  left  him  to  disgraceful  deeds,  which  will 
dim  the  luster  of  his  fame  forever.  Men  will 
honor  his  intellect,  but  despise  his  heart.  So  of 
Lord  Byron,  Rousseau,  Voltaire,  and  others.  Edu- 
cation is  as  a  mighty  steam-engine  to  a  ship — it 
gives  her  power — skillfully  regulated,  it  enables  her 
to  mount  the  loftiest  wave,  and  wage  successful  war 
with  the  fiercest  storm — directed  by  violence  and 
hate,  it  makes  her  powerful  to  destroy — submitted 
to  ignorance,  it  carries  her  to  destruction  on  the 
rock,  or  rends  her  to  fragments  in  mid  air.  Thus, 


INTELLIGENCE  AN   ELEMENT   OF   SUCCESS.       79 

education,  controlled  by  rectitude,  is  powerful  for 
good — swayed  by  depravity,  it  spreads  destruction 
over  society,  and  destroys  its  possessor.  Tennyson 
thus  beautifully  paints  an  educated  inind  unsancti- 
fied  by  the  Spirit  of  God.  He  calls  it 

"A  sinful  soul  possessed  of  many  gifts; 
A  spacious  garden,  full  of  flowering  weeds; 
A  glorious  devil,  large  in  heart  and  brain, 
That  did  love  beauty  only — beauty  seen 
In  all  varieties  of  mold  and  mind — 
And  knowledge  for  its  beauty ;  or,  if  good, 
Only  for  its  beauty." 

Permit  me  to  conduct  you  to  an  English  village, 
as  it  appeared  some  two  hundred  years  ago.  As 
your  eye  wanders  among  its  ancient  cottages,  with 
huge  gable-ends  and  roofs  of  thatched  straw,  let  it 
rest  upon  a  group  of  young  men,  surrounding  one 
whose  mean  dress  and  bag  of  tools  proclaim  him  to 
belong  to  the  humble  fraternity  of  traveling  tink- 
ers. He  is  the  chief  speaker,  and  his  conversation 
is  remarkable  only  for  its  extravagant  profanity. 
With  a  vulgar  air,  and  a  boisterous  manner,  he 
rolls  out  a  filthy  stream  of  oaths  from  the  fountain 


80  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

of  a  deeply-polluted  spirit.  Suddenly,  however, 
his  vile  speech  is  arrested  by  the  presence  of  a  low, 
forbidding  creature.  An  old,  wrinkled  crone,  with 
little,  twinkling  eyes,  a  cracked  voice,  and  a  hand 
resting  on  each  hip,  pushes  her  way  through  the 
group,  and,  gazing  earnestly  in  the  blasphemer's 
face,  exclaims, 

"You  curse  and  swear  at  such  an  ungodly  rate 
that  I  tremble  to  hear  you!  You  are  the  ungod- 
liest  person  for  swearing  I  ever  heard  in  my  whole 
life!" 

The  young  sinner  stands  amazed  and  stricken 
under  this  rebuke;  for  the  reprover  is  herself 
notorious  for  vulgarity  and  cursing.  Deep,  big 
thoughts  rush  through  his  startled  soul;  he  in- 
wardly but  sternly  resolves  to  be  a  better  man. 
That  day's  events  form  an  epoch  in  his  life.  Ere- 
long it  becomes  known  that  the  swearing  tinker  is 
transformed  into  the  exemplary  Christian.  Soon 
his  voice  is  heard  preaching  Christ.  Persecution 
breaks  forth  against  him.  The  harpies  of  bigotry 
hunt  him  from  the  pulpit  to  the  prison.  For 
twelve  years  he  lies  confined  in  a  miserable  aun- 


INTELLIGENCE  AN  ELEMENT  OF  SUCCESS.   81 

geon,  whose  walls  are  ever  dripping  with  damp, 
for  the  notable  offense  of  preaching  the  Gospel ! 
But,  from  that  dim  apartment,  he,  sends  forth  a 
book,  whose  original  conception,  grand  and  beauti- 
ful imagery,  touching  pathos,  purity  of  style,  and 
truthfulness  to  nature  and  experience,  give  its 
author  an  almost  unrivaled  fame  And  to-day  the 
tomo  of  John  Bunyan,  the  converted  tinker,  the 
author  of  the  Pilgrim's  Progress,  is  sought  out  by 
the  loftiest  sons  of  genius,  who  stand  upon  the 
sweet  dreamer's  ashes,  and  sigh  for  the  inspiration 
whicn  gave  enchantment  to  his  pen. 

The  point,  in  this  illustration,  which  it  is  import- 
ant to  the  young  man  to  notice,  is,  that  it  was 
religion  which  called  the  hidden  powers  of  Bun- 
yan's  intellect  into  exercise,  and  directed  them  to 
a  holy  end.  But  for  religion,  instead  of  being  a 
star  of  surpassing  beauty,  shedding  the  purest  rays 
of  soft  and  holy  light  on  the  human  intellect,  he 
would  have  lived  a  loathsome  human  reptile,  crawl- 
ing in  the  dust,  and  spitting  the  venom  of  death 
upon  mankind.  He  would  have  died 

"  Silent,  unseen,  unnoticed,  unlamented." 

6 


82  STHE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

To  religion,  therefore,  as  the  grand  stimulant, 
the  mighty  developing  agent  of  the  human  intel- 
lect, should  every  young  man  direct  his  fixed  atten- 
tion. A  power  of  unknown  extent  resides  in  its 
great  ideas.  Great  thoughts  always  stir  the  atten- 
tive  mind,  just  as  high  winds  cause  the  thick 
leaves  of  the  tree  to  rustle.  They  enlarge  it,  too. 
The  soul  of  a  philosopher  lives  in  a  wider  sphere, 
and  experiences  nobler  emotions,  than  the  soul  of 
a  peasant,  only  because  it  has  become  conversant 
with  the  grandeur  of  the  universe.  Let  the  peas- 
ant employ  the  same  means,  and  his  confined  spirit, 
bursting  the  cerements  of  its  intellectual  sepul- 
cher,  will  soar  freely  into  realms  of  glorious 
thought.  But  religion  brings  the  soul  into  con- 
tact with  loftier  and  grander  ideas  than  belong  to 
the  province  of  philosophy.  Before  the  gaze  of  a 
seeker  after  Christ,  it  unfolds  the  sublime  idea  of 
GOD.  It  leads  forth  the  awakened  mind  from  the 
narrow  boundaries  of  worldly  thought  into  the 
vastness  of  the  INFINITE,  and  bids  it  stretch  its 
powers  in  the  attempt  to  comprehend  ETERNITY! 
It  reveals  to  the  mind  the  consciousness  of  its  ow» 


INTELLIGENCE  AN  ELEMENT  OP  SUCCESS.       88 

immortality;  to  its  moral  perceptions  it  unfolds 
the  stern  grandeur  of  immutable  justice,  the  tre- 
mendou?  results  of  evil,  and  the  transcendent 
beauty  of  holiness.  To  soothe  its  fears  and  attract 
its  hopes,  it  displays  the  idea  of  love,  as  mani- 
fested in  the  character  and  death  of  the  great 
God-man,  Jesus  Christ. 

It  is  impossible  for  the  most  stultified  intellect 
to  be  brought  into  contact  with  these  overwhelm- 
ing thoughts,  without  being  awakened  from  its 
slumbers  and  startled  into  action.  Hence,  the  in- 
troduction of  the  Christian  religion  to  a  nation  is 
the  epoch  of  its  mental  birth;  and  the  entrance 
upon  a  spiritual  life  has  proved  the  birth-hour  of 
a  new  intellectual  life  to  thousands  of  individual 
Christians.  It  is  the  fault  of  its  recipients  that  it 
is  not  so  to  all. 

Religion  also  strengthens,  as  well  as  awakens,  the 
intellect.  Its  primary  condition  —  faith  in  Christ — 
requires  the  highest  exercise  of  the  powers  of  ab- 
straction and  attention.  For  faith  is  the  trustful 
gaze  of  the  soul  on  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ  — 
the  concentration  of  a  sinner's  mind  and  he*"* 


84  THE   YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

on  the  idea  of  a  sin-forgiving  God.  It  neces« 
earily  involves  the  exercise  of  complete  abstrac- 
tion and  powerful  attention.  As  this  faith  is 
required  to  be  habitual,  its  operations  must 
strengthen  these  important  faculties.  Beside  this, 
religion  leads  to  the  study  of  that  great  book,  the 
Bible.  Here  are  found  the  seeds  of  impregnating, 
healthy  thought  —  the  sublimest  poetry,  the  purest 
history,  the  most  touching  biography,  and  the  pro- 
foundest  philosophy.  The  study  of  these  excel- 
lences naturally  leads  to  that  of  collateral  history, 
and  to  the  highest  exercises  of  the  intellect,  so 
that  it  is  impossible  for  a  believer  in  Christ  to  be 
faithful  to  the  duties  and  teachings  of  religion, 
without  thereby  developing  his  intellect,  and  be- 
coming a  man  of  power:  as  in  the  case  of  Bun- 
yan  —  of  Newton,  the  admired  author  of  the  Olney 
hymns  —  of  Richard  Watson,  the  celebrated  orator 
and  theologian — and  thousands  more,  whose  men- 
tal strength  lay  hidden  even  from  themselves,  till 
called  out  by  the  power  of  divine  truth. 

Behold,  in  these  statements,  young  man,  another 
argument  in   favor  of  a  religious   life.     Embrace 


INTELLIGENCE   AN   ELEMENT  OF   SUCCESS.       85 

Christ  as  the  best,  perhaps  the  only  means  of 
bringing  your  intellect  into  a  state  of  vigorous  and 
healthy  life  —  as  the  guardian  angel  of  your  ge- 
nius, if  it  be  already  manifested.  Yield  yourself 
up  honestly  and  fully  to  the  claims  of  God  in 
Christ.  Be  a  spiritual,  intellectual  Christian. 
Thus  shall  your  mental  and  moral  powers  grow  in 
harmonious  proportion.  Your  heart  shall  be  warm 
with  emotions  of  love;  your  understanding  strong, 
mature,  potential;  your  conscience,  illuminated, 
quick,  and  pure;  your  will  upright,  controlling, 
and  inflexible.  These  things  being  in  you  and 
abounding,  you  can  hardly  fail  of  success  in  the 
great  battle  of  life,  nor  of  rising  to  the  honor  of 
Christ's  glorious  kingdom  in  the  life  to  come. 
Decide,  therefore,  0  youug  man,  to  listen  atten- 
tively to  the  voice  of  Jesus  Christ.  Let  him  woo 
you  to  himself,  through  the  sweet  lines  of  the 
lacred  poet,  who  thus  beautifully  sings : 

"  The  wild  dove  hath  her  nest ; 
Earth,  in  her  bosom,  shields  the  timid  hare ; 
Flowers  sleep  'neath  heaven's  azure  fane  ;  but  where, 
Except  ye  come  to  me,  shall  je  find  rest? 


86  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

Ye  of  the  troubled  breast, 
Weighed  down  with  sorrow,  and  of  life  aweary, 
Whose  paths  extend  through  deserts  waste  and  dreary 

Come,  then,  to  me  ;  I  will  impart  relief. 

In  life's  glad  summer  come ; 
Earth's  lovely  things,  the  beautiful,  the  gay, 
Are  they  not  swept  as  autumn  leaves  away  ? 

So  pass  your  hopes  and  visions  to  the  tomb. 

Though  by  the  world  caressed, 
Though  all  its  treasures  glitter  at  your  feet, 
And  life's  young  years  with  rapture  be  replete, 

0,  what  are  these  to  heaven  —  a  heaven  of  rest  1" 


ENERGY  AN  ELEMENT   OP   DISTINCTION.         87 

CHAPTER  V. 

ENERGY  AN   ELEMENT  OF  DISTINCTION. 

ris  impossible  I"  said  one  of  Napoleon's  staff 
officers,  in  reply  to  his  great  commander's  de- 
scription of  a  plan  for  some  daring  enterprise. 

"  IMPOSSIBLE  I"  cried  the  emperor,  with  indig- 
nation frowning  on  his  brow;  "impossible  is  the 
adjective  of  fools !" 

This  may  be  an  apocryphal  anecdote  of  the  im- 
perial conqueror;  but  it  is  at  least  characteristic. 
It  displays  that  consciousness  of  power  to  overcome 
the  mightiest  obstacles,  and  to  accomplish  the  most 
extravagant  purposes,  which  was  one  of  the  chief 
elements  of  his  early  success.  Its  language  is  the 
strong  expression  of  a  mind  charged  with  an  en- 
ergy alike  irresistible  and  unconquerable.  And 
every  young  man  who  hopes  to  stand  triumphant 
at  the  goal  of  life,  must  possess  a  measure  of  this 
energy  proportionate  to  the  exigencies  of  his  con- 
dition. 


88       THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

Energy  is  force  of  character —  inward  power.  It 
imports  such  a  concentration  of  the  will  upon  the 
realization  of  an  idea,  as  enables  the  individual  to 
march  unawed  over  the  most  gigantic  barriers,  or 
to  crush  every  opposing  force  that  stands  in  the 
way  of  his  triumph.  Energy  knows  of  nothing 
but  success ;  it  will  not  hearken  to  voices  of  dis- 
couragement; it  never  yields  its  purpose;  though 
it  may  perish  beneath  an  avalanche  of  difficulty, 
yet  it  dies  contending  for  its  ideal. 

LONGFELLOW'S  EXCELSIOR  is  a  beautiful  embodi- 
ment of  the  idea  of  energy.  Its  hero  is  a  young 
man  seeking  genuine  excellence;  proving  himself 
superior  to  the  love  of  ease,  the  blandishments  of 
passion,  and  the  sternest  outward  difficulties.  The 
reader  beholds  him  ascending  the  rugged  steeps 
of  the  Upper  Alps,  at  the  dangerous  hour  of  twi- 
light. In  his  hand  he  bears  a  banner,  whose 
strange  device,  "  EXCELSIOR,"  is  the  visible  ex- 
pression of  his  noble  purpose,  to  attain  the  hight 
of  human  excellence.  His  brow  is  sad,  his  eyes 
are  gleaming  with  the  light  of  lofty  thought,  his 
step  is  firm  and  elastic,  while  his  deep,  earnest  cry, 


ENERGY  AN  ELEMENT   OP  DISTINCTION.         89 

'  EXCELSIOR  !"  rings  with,  startling  effect  among 
the  surrounding  crags  and  glaciers.  Ease,  in  the 
form  of  an  enchanting  cottage,  with  its  cheerful 
fireside,  invites  him  to  relax  his  effort.  Danger 
frowns  upon  him  from  the  brow  of  the  awful  ava- 
lanche, and  from  the  "pine  tree's  withered  branch." 
Caution,  in  the  person  of  an  aged  Alpine  peasant, 
shouts  in  his  ear,  and  bids  him  beware;  while 
Love,  in  the  form  of  a  gentle  maiden,  with  heav- 
ing breast  and  bewitching  voice,  woos  him  to  her 
quiet  bowers.  But  vain  are  the  seductions  of  love, 
the  voices  of  fear,  or  the  aspects  of  danger.  Re- 
gardless of  each  and  of  all,  animated  by  his  sub- 
lime aims,  intent  on  success,  he  only  grasps  his 
mysterious  banner  more  firmly,  and  bounds  with 
swifter  step  along  the  dangerous  steep.  Through 
falling  snows,  along  unseen  paths,  amidst  intense 
darkness,  beside  the  most  horrible  chasms,  he  pur- 
Bues  his  way,  cheering  his  spirit,  and  startling  the 
ear  of  night  with  his  battle-cry,  "Excelsior!"  till, 
on  reaching  the  summit,  in  the  moment  of  accom- 
plished purpose,  his  work  done,  his  manly  form 
chilled  by  the  cold  breath  of  the  frost,  he  falls  — 


90  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

yea,  nobly  falls — into  the  treacherous  snow-drift, 
and 

"  There  in  the  twilight,  cold  and  gray, 
Lifeless,  but  beautiful,  he  lay ; 
And  from  the  sky,  serene  and  far, 
A  voice  fell,  like  a  falling  star, 
Excelsior  t" 

From  the  summit  of  human  attainment  on  earth, 
he  had  gone  to  dwell  in  the  blessed  heaven  of  God. 
There  his  spirit,  bathed  in  light,  soars  forever 
amidst  the  unspeakable  glories  of  the  Infinite. 

This  is  a  beautiful  ideal  of  an  energetic  youth 
triumphing,  even  to  the  salvation  of  his  immortal 
soul.  May  the  dream  of  the  poet  be  realized  in 
the  experience  of  the  reader ! 

Energy  is  the  soul  of  every  great  achievement ; 
while  enervation  emasculates  the  spirit,  and  dooms 
the  man  to  obscurity  and  ill  success.  Men  of 
feeble  action  are  accustomed  to  attribute  their 
misfortunes  to  what  is  vulgarly  termed  "ill  luck" 
They  envy  the  men  who  climb  the  ladder  of  em- 
inence, and  call  them  "the  favorite  children  of 
fortune — lucky  men,  and  men  of  peculiar  oppor- 


ENERGY  AN   ELEMENT   OF  DISTINCTION.         91 

tunity."  This  is  a  vain  and  foolish  imagination. 
It  is  not  ill  fortune,  so  much  as  an  enervated  mind, 
that  keeps  thousands  in  inglorious  obscurity.  The 
blundering  student,  who  stammers  out  an  ill-learned 
lesson  in  his  college  class,  and  gains  his  diploma, 
at  last,  through  indulgence  rather  than  merit,  owes 
his  degraded  position  more  to  that  voluntary  mental 
imbecility  which  has  ever  shrunk  from  the  labor  of 
study,  than  to  any  absolute  mental  inferiority.  His 
triumphant  classmate,  who  quits  his  college  adorned 
with  the  proudest  honors  of  his  Alma  Mater,  is  as 
much  indebted  to  his  persevering  energy,  as  to  his 
native  genius,  for  his  honorable  victory.  He 
might,  had  he  been  equally  supine,  have  been 
equally  degraded  with  his  unhonored  classmate. 
But  his  energy  saved  him.  So,  in  all  the  other 
walks  of  life,  energy  produces  good  fortune  and 
success,  while  enervation  breeds  misfortune  and 
"lad  luck." 

If  any  young  man  desires  a  confirmation  of 
these  ideas,  let  him  carefully  study  the  history 
of  every  man  who  has  written  his  name  on  the 
walls  of  the  Temple  of  Fame.  Let  him  view  such 


92  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

minds  in  their  progress  toward  greatness.  He 
will  see  them  rising  step  by  step,  in  the  face  of 
stubborn  difficulties,  which  gave  way  before  them 
only  because  their  courage  would  not  be  daunted, 
nor  their  energy  wearied.  He  will  find  no  excep- 
tion, in  the  history  of  mankind.  Supine,  power- 
less souls  have  always  fainted  before  hostile  cir- 
cumstances, and  sank  beneath  their  opportunities; 
while  men  of  power  have  wrestled  with  sublime 
vigor  against  all  opposing  men  and  things,  and 
obtained  success  because  they  would  not  be  de- 
feated. 

I  might  illustrate  these  views  from  the  biog- 
raphy of  any  eminent  man;  but  I  select  CHRIS- 
TOPHER COLUMBUS  as  peculiarly  adapted  to  my 
purpose.  He  was  the  son  of  an  obscure  wool- 
comber,  in  indigent  circumstances,  at  Genoa. 
His  early  education  was  limited.  Bred  to  the 
profession  of  seamanship,  and  having  a  strong 
passion  for  geographical  studies,  his  thoughtful 
mind  conceived  the  idea  that  unknown  empires 
existed  west  of  the  great  Atlantic.  He  dwelt 
upon  this  thought  till  it  became  fixed  in  his  mind 


ENERGY  AN  ELEMENT  OF  DISTINCTION.         98 

with  singular  firmness.  It  fired  his  soul  with  noble 
enthusiasm ;  it  gave  elevation  to  his  spirit ;  it 
clothed  his  person  with  dignity,  and  inspired  hia 
demeanor  with  loftiness.  Thus  animated,  he  re- 
solved to  realize  the  truth  of  his  great  conception. 
Now  came  the  test  of  his  character.  The  idea 
itself  was  grand,  and  its  conception  bespoke  the 
possession  of  a  towering  and  glorious  intellect. 
But,  to  make  that  conception  a  reality,  to  prove 
himself  a  true  son  of  Genius,  and  not  a  mere 
romantic  dreamer,  required  the  exercise  of  such  a 
measure  of  faith,  self-reliance,  and  enduring  en- 
ergy as  is  seldom  demanded  of  any  man,  even  in 
the  greatest  of  human  enterprises. 

But  Columbus  felt  equal  to  his  work,  and  he  set 
about  it  with  a  purpose  to  do  it.  How  sublime 
does  he  appear  in  his  conflict  with  poverty,  ridi- 
cule, and  ignorance !  The  announcement  of  his 
beloved  idea  was  greeted  with  torrents  of  derisive 
sarcasm,  from  prince  and  peasant,  from  learned 
savans  and  stupid  dunces.  Powerless  and  money- 
less himself,  he  required  the  patronage  of  the 
powerful.  Hence,  he  placed  himself  at  fche  foot 


94  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

of  the  Portuguese  throne,  stated  his  views,  and 
demanded  ships  to  explore  the  ocean.  Treated 
with  fraud  unworthy  of  a  court,  the  intrepid  man 
fled  to  Genoa,  and  importuned  for  aid  in  his  native 
city.  Unable  to  rouse  the  ambition  of  his  coun- 
trymen, he  repaired  to  Venice,  and  met  with  sim- 
ilar disappointment.  From  thence  he  traveled  to 
Spain,  and  pleaded  his  cause  before  the  lordly  Ferdi- 
nand, and  his  great-minded  queen,  Isabella.  There 
he  was  amused  with  promises  of  ships  and  men, 
for  several  years,  during  which  time  he  persever- 
ingly  followed  the  court  in  its  frequent  journeyings. 
At  last,  wearied  with  their  delays,  but  still  resolute 
in  his  purpose,  he  prepared  to  quit  Spain,  and 
turned  his  footsteps  toward  the  court  of  France. 
Arrested  on  his  journey  by  the  persuasions  of  an 
intelligent  monk,  he  returned  to  Isabella's  court, 
obtained  the  long-delayed  means,  and  set  sail  on 
seas  whose  waters  had  never  been  cleaved  by  a 
vessel's  prow. 

With  what  high  and  confident  expectation  did 
the  adventurous  discoverer  pass  the  boundaries 
of  former  navigation !  With  what  patient  zeal 


ENERGY  AN  ELEMENT  OP  DISTINCTION.         95 

did  he  overcome  the  superstition  which  made 
cowards  of  his  mariners,  and  the  ignorant  envy 
which  very  nearly  converted  them  into  mutineers ! 
By  the  force  of  his  own  indomitable  will  alone, 
he  soothed  their  fears,  and  held  them  to  their 
duties,  till  he  proudly  anchored  his  vessels  off  the 
shores  of  the  New  "World.  And  when  the  haughty 
flag  of  Spain  flaunted  in  the  breezes  of  the  west- 
ern hemisphere,  as  the  sign  of  its  subjugation  to 
the  crown  of  Isabella,  it  chiefly  proclaimed  the 
moral  majesty  of  that  unconquerable  energy 
through  which  the  noble-minded  Columbus  had 
singly  defied  the  most  formidable  obstacles,  and 
revealed  a  hidden  world  to  the  wondering  eyea 
of  mankind. 

Are  you,  my  reader,  an  aspirant  after  distin- 
guished success?  Then  you  must  diligently  cul- 
tivate an  untiring,  persisting,  victorious  energy, 
like  that  which  gave  Columbus  his  renown.  Is 
your  lot  lowly  and  your  sphere  very  limited  ?  Are 
your  difficulties  apparently  insurmountable  ?  What 
then?  Are  you,  therefore,  to  write  yourself  a 
nothing,  and  remain  a  cipher  in  society  ?  Nay  I 


96  THE   YDUNO   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

You  must  rather  bring  an  irresistible  force  of 
character  to  bear  upon  every  work  of  life.  Be 
supine  in  nothing.  Never  despair  of  success  in 
any  judicious  enterprise.  Resolve  to  accomplish 
whatever  you  undertake ;  and  though  you  may  not 
discover  a  new  world,  like  Columbus;  nor  intro- 
duce mankind  to  the  occult  mysteries  of  nature, 
like  Newton ;  nor  attain  the  wealth  of  Rothschild, 
or  Astor;  yet  you  may  climb  to  the  summit  of  your 
profession,  attain  to  honorable  distinction,  and 
transmit  to  your  posterity  that  most  valuable  of  all 
bequests — a  good  name. 

Yet  you  must  beware  of  rashness.  Successful 
energy  is  a  Bucephalus,  guided  by  the  hand  of  an 
Alexander;  rashness  is  as  Mazeppa's  fiery  steed, 
unbridled  and  unrestrained,  bearing  its  rider  over 
hill  and  dale,  to  probable  destruction.  The  former 
is  power,  guided  by  wisdom;  the  latter  is  power, 
goaded  to  act  by  blind  impulses.  Many  men,  now 
pining  in  discouragement,  have  expended  energy 
sufficient  for  the  highest  success.  But  they  have 
failed  of  their  reward,  because  they  sought  not  for 
counsel  at  the  lips  of  wisdom.  Rash  enterprises, 


ENERGY  AN  ELEMENT  OF  DISTINCTION.         97 

impetuously  begun,  hurried  them  to  ruin.  In 
their  business,  they  resembled  an  oriental  warrior, 
named  DERAR,  who  was  once  sent,  with  a  small 
force,  by  ABU  BEKER,  the  Moslem  caliph,  to  hinder 
the  progress  of  an  advancing  army,  near  the  plains 
of  Damascus.  Derar  found  the  foe  to  consist  of 
masses  of  troops  sufficient  tc  overwhelm  his  little 
band;  but,  instead  of  hovering  round  their  flank, 
and  harassing  their  march,  he  foolishly  resolved  on 
a  regular  attack.  His  voice  thundered  his  battle- 
cry,  and,  followed  by  the  flower  of  his  chivalric 
soldiers,  he  rushed,  with  the  fury  of  a  whirlwind, 
upon  the  astonished  enemy.  So  fiery  was  his  onset 
that  the  foe  gave  way,  and  their  rich  standard  fell 
into  the  hands  of  the  bold  assailant.  But  his  suc- 
cess was  of  brief  duration ;  numbers  speedily  pre- 
vailed, and  Derar  fell  wounded  into  the  hands  of 
his  enemies.  Every  Moslem  in  his  devoted  little 
troop  would  have  perished,  but  for  the  timely  ap- 
proach of  the  main  body  of  the  Arab  army,  which 
arrived  in  season  to  rescue  them  from  destruction. 
Thus  has  many  a  mercantile  Derar  rushed  madly 
upon  an  army  of  debts,  which,  after  harassing  him 
7 


98  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

into  a  premature  old  age,  have  led  him  forth,  a 
poor,  dispirited  creature,  into  the  bondage  of  bank- 
ruptcy. 

Beware,  then,  young  man,  of  mistaking  rash- 
ness for  energy !  They  are  so  nearly  allied  that 
the  mistake  is  easy.  To  guard  you  as  much  as 
possible,  I  will  draw  a  simple  sketch  of  a  rash 
man,  plunging,  through  excess  of  energy — which 
is  the  same  thing  with  rashness  —  into  business 
ruin. 

I  will  call  him  EDGAR.  In  his  youth  he  was 
apprenticed  to  a  respectable  tailor,  became  a  supe- 
rior workman,  and,  as  soon  as  his  apprenticeship 
expired,  determined,  without  capital,  and  contrary 
to  the  advice  of  all  his  friends,  to  commence  busi- 
ness on  his  own  account.  His  reputation  as  a  good 
apprentice  procured  him  credit.  He  hired  a  store, 
purchased  a  small  stock  of  goods,  and  rejoiced  to 
see  his  name  shining  in  gilt  letters  as  a  merchant 
tailor.  Custom  came  in  freely;  success  seemed 
sure,  notwithstanding  the  fears  of  his  cautious 
friends.  He  redoubled  his  efforts,  increased  his 
stock,  ornamented  his  store,  and  made  quite  a  stir 


ENERGY  AN   ELEMENT  OF   DISTINCTION.         99 

among  business  men.  Such  were  his  activity, 
punctuality,  and  industry,  that  his  business  con- 
tinued to  advance;  and  in  a  year  or  two  it  ex- 
ceeded that  of  many  older  firms  in  his  vicinity. 
He  now  married,  and  for  a  time  every  thing  went 
on  prosperously.  But  he  was  ambitious  of  having 
the  finest  store  and  the  largest  stock  of  any  dealer 
in  his  line  of  business.  Hence,  he  constantly  pur- 
chased beyond  the  necessities  of  his  business.  As 
a  sequence,  his  notes  matured  before  the  means 
came  in,  and  he  began  to  be  seen  in  the  street, 
running  from  store  to  store  with  the  question, 
"  Have  you  any  thing  over  to-day  ?" 

The  frequency  of  these  calls,  and  the  difficulty 
he  found  in  promptly  paying  the  sums  thus  gener- 
ously loaned,  awakened  suspicion  as  to  his  safety, 
and  his  fellow-merchants  soon  met  his  question 
with  an  almost  universal  negative.  This  ought  to 
have  checked  his  passion  for  a  large  stock.  But, 
eager  as  ever  for  display,  he  persisted  in  buying 
beyond  the  immediate  demands  of  his  trade.  As 
a  thrifty  merchant,  too,  he  thought  he  must  ele- 
vate his  style  of  living.  A  better  house,  expensive 


100  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

furniture,  a  servant,  the  luxuries  of  the  table,  Boon 
absorbed  large  portions  of  his  profits.  Still  his 
notes  came  to  maturity  with  alarming  rapidity. 
Driven  to  extremity,  he  resorted  to  that  side-door 
to  ruin,  a  broker's  office.  Exorbitant  interest  only 
increased  his  embarassments.  His  temper  grew 
sour;  visions  of  ruin  and  bankruptcy  floated  be- 
fore his  eyes,  and  made  him  nervous  and  unhappy. 
He  struggled,  like  a  giant  in  bonds,  for  a  few 
years;  but,  after  growing  prematurely  gray  in  the 
conflict,  he  was  forced  to  submit.  His  disgraced 
name  appeared  in  the  Gazette;  and  to-day  Edgar 
sits  on  the  bench,  laboring  for  a  scanty  support  aa 
an  unknown  journeyman  tailor — a  discouraged 
man. 

It  is  easy  for  the  reader  to  see  that  Edgar  ruined 
himself  by  excess  of  energy;  or,  in  other  words, 
by  rashness.  Had  he  taken  prudent  advice  at  the 
beginning,  and  acquired  a  small  capital  in  ad- 
vance; had  he  then  wisely  regulated  his  purchases 
by  his  actual  resources,  and  restrained  his  personal 
expenses  within  the  limit  of  his  means,  his  strong 
force  of  character  would  have  placed  him  among 


ENERGY  AN  ELEMENT  OP  DISTINCTION.       101 

the  first  men  of  his  class.  But  ho  was  rash,  and, 
therefore,  he  was  ruined.  His  example  is  placed 
before  the  young  merchant,  that,  as  a  beacon  upon 
a  sunken  rock  warns  the  mariner  of  danger,  it  may 
save  him  from  a  similar  fate. 

The  energy  of  many  men  is  impulsive.  It  is  to- 
day a  dashing,  roaring  torrent;  to-morrow  it  is  a 
stagnant  pool.  An  accidental  circumstance  will 
call  out  every  power  of  their  souls,  and,  for  a 
season,  they  will  excel  themselves,  and  startle  their 
friends.  But  they  speedily  spend  their  force,  and 
lapse  into  stupid  somnolency,  till  roused  again  by 
some  bugle  blast  of  excitement.  Such  minds  ac- 
complish but  little.  They  lose  more  in  their  slum- 
bers than  they  gain  in  their  fitful  hours  of  action. 
The  calm,  steady  energy  of  the  snail,  slow  as  are 
its  movements,  is  better  calculated  to  produce 
results  than  the  spasmodic  leaps  of  the  hare. 
Hence,  in  the  formation  of  character,  it  is  of  vital 
importance  to  cultivate  a  steady,  uniform,  unyield- 
ing energy. 

But  how  is  this  high  qualification  to  be  gained  ? 
Where  is  this  precious  possession  to  be  obtained  ? 


102          THE  YOUNO  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

I  know  of  no  means  so  certain  and  effectual  as  that 
of  surrendering  the  soul  to  the  claims  of  religion, 
the  direct  tendency  of  which  is  to  call  the  whole 
force  of  the  intellect  and  the  affections  into  the 
highest  and  healthiest  state  of  action.     What  is 
the  grand  central  command  of  the  Bible?     "  Thou 
shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  HEART,  with 
all  thy  SOUL,  and  with   all  thy  MIGHT  !"     Here 
you  see  that  energy   of   the  loftiest   character  is 

demanded  of  the  Christian,     Nor  is  the  command 
"**^ 

permitted  to  approach  him  as  an  impossible  attain- 
ment; for,  to  every  sincere  creature  who  resolves 
to  submit  to  the  commandment,  the  promise  of 
God  says,  "  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thec."  Thus 
divine  power  works  with  the  human,  and  the  man, 
in  the  might  of  his  soul,  stands  forth  as  the  serv- 
ant of  God. 

Nor  is  it  in  his  religious  duties  alone  that  the 
Christian  is  required  and  enabled  to  be  energetic. 
The  Scriptures  demand  the  application  of  a  similar 
force  of  mind  to  all  the  duties  of  life.  With  au- 
thority they  thunder  in  the  ears  of  the  disciple, 

II  WHATSOEVER  thy  hand  findeth  to  do,  do  it  with 


ENERGY  AN   ELEMENT   OP  DISTINCTION.       103 

thy  MIGHT  !"  Thus,  whether  his  work  be  to  fell  a 
tree,  to  plow  a  field,  to  build  a  house,  to  labor  in 
the  pulpit,  to  plead  at  the  bar,  or  to  pray  in  the 
closet,  the  law  is,  "Do  IT  WITH  THY  MIGHT!" 

There  is  a  profound  meaning  in  this  eommaiid, 
rarely  observed.  It  contains  the  philosophy  of 
growth  and  of  greatness.  It  teaches  that  it  is  by 
the  exercise  of  energy,  in  little  things,  we  are  to 
acquire  power  to  triumph  in  great  ones;  that  what 
we  find  to  be  done,  we  are  TO  DO — not  to  shrink 
from  doing,  because  of  its  difficulty.  Thus,  by  de- 
grees, the  soul  is  trained  to  put  forth  a  force  pro- 
portionate to  its  tasks;  it  grows  in  might,  and  con- 
quers by  habit.  Every  thing  it  does  is  well  done. 
It  lives  to  subdue  opposing  forces.  Instead  of 
being  the  sport  of  circumstances,  it  seizes  them  as 
their  master,  and  its  career  is  one  of  perpetual 
triumph. 

Would  you  have  energy,  young  man  ?  Seek  it 
at  the  cross  of  Christ.  Let  the  spirit  of  Jesus 
clothe  you  with  its  divine  beauty,  and  stimulate 
you  by  its  mighty,  life-giving  force.  Only  be  true 
to  its  holy  promptings,  and  you  will  surely  acquire 


104  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

the  energy  which  grapples  successfully  with  the 
obstacles  of  this  terrestrial  life,  and  climbs  to  the 
bight  of  the  celestial  and  eternal  land. 


INDUSTBY  THE   HIGHWAY  TO  SUCCESS.       105 


CHAPTER  VI. 

INDUSTRY  THE   HIGHWAY  TO  SUCCESS, 

XHAVE  somewhere  read  an  old  legend,  which, 
however  false  in  fact,  contains  a  precious  lesson. 
It  states  that,  some  centuries  ago,  a  man,  resident 
in  Egypt,  became  a  convert  to  the  Christian  faith. 
The  spirit  of  the  times  favored  asceticism;  and 
he,  being  of  a  contemplative  mind,  conceived 
the  unnatural  desire  that  if  he  could  retire  far 
from  human  society,  and  spend  his  days  in  solitary 
contemplation,  he  should  attain  to  the  perfection 
of  human  happiness  on  earth.  Filled  with  this 
thought,  he  bade  adieu  to  the  abodes  of  men, 
wandered  far  into  the  desert,  selected  a  cave, 
near  which  flowed  a  living  spring,  for  his  home, 
and,  subsisting  on  the  scanty  crops  of  roots  and 
herbs  which  sprang  up  spontaneously  in  the  adja- 
cent glens  and  valleys,  began  his  life  of  meditation 
and  prayer. 


106  THE   TOUNQ   MAN'S   COUNSELOE. 

He  had  n.ot  spent  many  seasons  in  his  hermitage 
before  his  solitary  heart  grew  miserable  beyond 
endurance.  The  long,  weary  hours  of  the  day, 
and  the  dreary,  interminable  night,  oppressed  and 
crushed  his  listless  soul.  In  the  extremity  of  his 
wretchedness,  he  fell  upon  his  face,  and  cried, 
"  Father,  call  home  thy  child !  Let  me  die !  I 
am  weary  of  life !" 

Thus,  stricken  with  grief,  he  fell  asleep;  and, 
in  his  vision,  an  angel  stood  before  him,  and 
spoke,  saying,  "Cut  down  the  palm-tree  that  grows 
beside  yon  spring,  and  of  its  fibers  construct  a 
rope !" 

The  vision  passed  away,  and  the  hermit  awoke 
with  a  resolution  to  fulfill  his  mission.  But  he 
had  no  ax,  and,  therefore,  journeyed  far  to  pro- 
cure one.  On  his  return,  he  felled  the  tree,  and 
diligently  labored  till  its  fibers  lay  at  his  feet, 
formed  into  a  coil  of  rope.  Again  the  angel 
stood  before  him,  and  said,  "Dominic,  you  are 
now  no  longer  weary  of  life,  but  you  are  happy. 
Know,  then,  that  man  was  made  for  labor;  and 
prayer  also  is  his  duty.  Both  are  essential  to 


INDUSTRY  THE   HIGHWAY  TO   SUCCESS.       107 

hi&  happiness.  Go,  therefore,  into,  the  world, 
with  this  rope  girded  upon  thy  loins.  Let  it 
be  a  memorial  to  thee  of  what  God  expects  from 
man  I" 

This  beautiful  legend  illustrates  a  truth  which 
every  young  man  should  engrave  on  his  heart — 
that  industry  is  essential  to  the  enjoyment  of  life. 
It  is  a  law  of  the  human  constitution  that  man- 
kind shall  find  their  happiness  and  their  devel- 
opment in  action;  and  it  were  as  easy  to  grasp 
the  forked  lightning,  or  to  stay  the  fiery  waves 
of  the  volcano,  as  to  contravene  this  law.  Nay, 
it  can  not  be;  for  He  who  said,  "In  the  sweat 
of  thy  face  shalt  thou  eat  bread  till  thou  return 
unto  the  ground,"  has  established  this  insepa- 
rable connection  between  industry  and  enjoy- 
ment. 

Industry  implies  regular  and  habitual  devotion 
to  a  useful  pursuit.  It  is  covetous  of  moments, 
and  guards  them  as  a  miser  his  grains  of  gold. 
Moments,  to  the  industrious  man,  are  as  flowers 
to  bees — they  furnish  him  with  the  opportunity 
of  accomplishing  his  ends.  He  beholds  in  them 


108  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

the  fractional  parts  of  his  life,  and  applies  the 
maxim  of  the  economist  to  their  expenditure. 
His  rule  is,  "Take  care  of  the  moments,  and 
the  years  will  take  care  of  themselves."  He 
is  assiduous,  not  as  a  "hen  over  an  addled 
egg,"  but  to  bring  benefit  out  of  his  assiduity. 
He  knows  that  it  is  possible  to  be  always  "busy 
about  nothing,"  like  JEropus,  the  Macedonian 
king,  who  wasted  his  life  while  busy  in  making 
lanterns!  or,  like  Prince  Bonbennin,  in  Gold- 
smith's "Citizen  of  the  World,"  who  was  never 
more  idle  than  when  traversing  his  kingdom, 
searching  after  a  "pretty  white  mouse  with  green 
eyes." 

Behold  yon  graceful  and  sprightly  "swallow, 
zigzagging  over  the  clover-field,  skimming  the 
limpid  lake,  whisking  round  the  steeple,  or  danc- 
ing gayly  in  the  sky !  Behold  him  in  high  spir- 
its, shrieking  out  his  ecstasy,  as  he  has  bolted 
a  dragon-fly,  or  darted  through  the  arrow-slits 
of  an  old  turret,  or  performed  some  other  feat 
of-hirundine  agility!  And  notice  how  he  pays 
his  morning  visits — alighting  elegantly  on  some 


INDUSTRY  THE  HIGHWAY  TO   SUCCESS.       109 

house-top,  and  twittering  politely,  by  turns,  to 
the  swallow  on  either  side  of  him;  and.  after 
five  minutes'  conversation,  off  and  away,  to  call 
for  his  friend  at  the  castle.  And  now  he  is 
gone  upon  his  travels — gone  to  spend  the  winter 
at  Rome  or  Naples,  to  visit  Egypt  or  the  Holy 
Land,  or  perform  some  more  recherche  pilgrimage 
to  Spain  or  the  coast  of  Barbary.  And  when 
he  comes  home  next  April,  sure  enough  he  has 
been  abroad :  charming  climate — highly  delighted 
with  the  cicadas  in  Italy,  and  the  bees  on  Hy- 
mettus  —  locusts  in  Africa  rather  scarce  thia 
season;  but,  upon  the  whole,  much  pleased  with 
his  trip,  and  returned  in  high  health  and 
spirits." 

Such  is  the  severe  satire  which  the  popular 
Robert  Hamilton  employs  to  chastise  that  large 
class  of  busy  idlers  which  abounds  in  Europe, 
and  which  is  fast  multiplying  in  America.  How 
degraded  a  thing  is  life  as  thus  spent  by  a  fash- 
ionable young  man  of  the  world,  whose  "chief 
end"  seems  to  consist  in  puffing  cigars,  and  in 
conforming,  as  near  as  may  be,  to  the  example 


110  THE   YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

of  the  swallow  in  the  above  picture.  No  wonder 
that,  long  before  such  young  men  attain  merid- 
ian, they  exclaim,  with  "CROAKER,"  in  Gold- 
smith's "Good-natured  Man,"  that  "life,  at  the 
greatest  and  best,  is  but  a  froward  child,  that 
must  be  humored  and  coaxed  a  little,  till  it  falls 
asleep,  and  then  all  the  care  is  over."  Shame 
on  such  young  men  !  Beside  them  the  twitter- 
ing swallow  is  honorable  and  elevated.  The 
bird  was  made  for  such  a  life,  and  thus  fulfills 
its  destiny;  but  that  silly  youth  was  made  to  be 
a  MAN  ! — to  commune  with  God,  to  labor  in  the 
holy  charities  and  sublime'  duties  of  life. 

To  be  industrious,  then,  a  young  man  must 
have  a  useful  pursuit,  and  a  worthy  aim.  He  must 
follow  that  pursuit  diligently.  Rising  early,  and 
economizing  his  moments,  he  must  earnestly  per- 
sist in  his  toil,  adding  little  by  little  to  his 
capital  stock  of  ideas,  influence,  or  wealth.  Ho 
must  learn  to  glory  in  his  labor,  be  it  mechan- 
ical agricultural,  or  professional.  He  must  im- 
press himself  deeply  with  the  idea  that  a  life 
of  idleness  is  one  of  the  direst  of  all  curses.  The 


INDUSTRY  THE  HIGHWAY  TO   SUCCESS.       Ill 

doctrine  that  labor,  even  of  the  humblest  char- 
acter, is  dishonorable,  he  must  resolutely  trample 
in  the  dust  as  false  and  dangerous,  and  contend 
that  an  industrious,  honest  scavenger  is  really  a 
more  honorable  man  than  the  most  fashionable 
dandy,  who  idles  away  his  time  on  the  pavements 
of  Broadway,  in  ladies'  drawing-rooms,  in  cafes, 
and  in  theaters.  Thus,  eschewing  false  ideas, 
and  making  every  moment  fruitful  of  some  good 
to  mind  or  body,  to  himself  or  to  others,  he  can 
not  fail  of  a  plenteous  harvest  of  advantages  as 
life  advances.  "  Seest  ihou  a  man  diligent  in  liis 
business?  He  shall  stand  before  kings.  He  shall 
not  stand  before  mean  men."  "  The  hand  of  the 
diligent  shall  rule." 

I  love  to  honor  those  men  who  are  the  actual 
of  the  ideal  in  the  sacred  texts  just  quoted — the 
pedestal  of  whose  honorable  and  elevated  position 
has  been  hewed  out  of  the  reluctant  granite  by 
their  own  labor-loving  hands.  What  is  a  haughty 
duke  or  earl,  with  his  lofty  ancestry  running 
back  through  a  thousand  years,  when  compared 
with  an  industrious  son  of  labor,  whose  patent 


112  THE  YOUNG  MAN' 8  COUNSELOR. 

of  nobility  is  found  in  his  own  noble  struggles 
with  early  poverty  and  obscurity  ?  Let  the  heart 
of  the  young  man  answer  this  question  ! 

Permit  me  to  lead  you,  for  a  moment,  my 
reader,  into  yonder  printing-office.  Among  the 
printers  are  two  young  men,  who  are  noted  for 
the  unwearied  assiduity  with  which  they  ply  their 
daily  tasks.  Always  in  the  office  at  the  appointed 
hour,  ever  at  their  posts,  toiling  with  uncom- 
plaining steadiness,  never  yielding  to  the  lassitude 
which  craves  a  respite  before  its  work  is  finished, 
they  have  secured  the  respect  of  their  employers, 
the  confidence  of  their  friends,  and  are  slowly 
improving  their  own  condition.  Concerning  these 
young  men,  suppose  I  predict  that  they  will  one 
day  become  widely  known  and  immensely  rich. 
What  do  you  reply  ? 

You  pronounce  my  prediction  an  extravagance, 
and  me  a  visionary  man !  Be  it  so.  Yet,  under 
the  guise  of  this  fancy,  I  have  exhibited  only  a 
simple  fact.  The  two  young  men  represent  Messrs. 
JAMES  and  JOHN  HARPER,  who,  some  thirty  years 
ago,  were  poor  journeymen  printers,  but  who, 


INDUSTRY  THE  HIGHWAY  TO   SUCCESS.       118 

to-day,  are  owners  of  one  of  the  most  princely 
publishing  establishments  in  the  world.  Their 
names  are  household  words  in  all  civilized  com- 
munities. And  of  Mr.  James  Harper  it  may  be 
said,  that,  if  not,  like  the  Whittington  of  our 
boyish  reveries,  thrice  Lord  Mayor  of  London, 
he  has  been  once  Mayor  of  the  chief  city  in 
the  great  Empire  state.  But  his  proudest  dis- 
tinction is,  that  he  and  his  brother  have  reared 
their  magnificent  house  on  the  foundations  of 

INTEGRITY,  ECONOMY,  AND  INDUSTRY  ! 

The  success  of  industrious  effort  finds  a  further 
illustration  in  the  case  of  a  little  boy,  named 
Armstrong,  who,  a  few  years  ago,  entered  a  Bos- 
ton printing-offi.ce,  and  labored  diligently,  as  the 
youngest  apprentice,  at  the  lowest  tasks  of  the 
establishment.  Sedulously  attending  to  his  duties 
as  they  increased  in  responsibility,  he  kept  on 
his  steady  way,  till,  honorably  concluding  his 
apprenticeship,  he  began  business  for  himself,  at 
the  corner  of  Flag-alley,  in  State-street.  Unwea- 
ried in  his  devotion  to  his  profession,  his  custom 
and  profits  increased.  Wealth  poured  in  apace 
8 


114  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

upon  him.  Honors  crowned  his  brow,  and  he 
took  his  seat,  first  in  the  General  Court,  then  in 
the  honorable  chair  of  the  Boston  mayoralty,  and 
at  length  in  that  of  the  Lieutenant-Governor  of 
Massachusetts.  He  spent  the  closing  years  of 
his  life  in  a  pleasant  and  stately  mansion,  an 
affluent,  honorable,  and  independent  man  —  a  noble 
example  of  what  may  be  accomplished  by  the  aids 
of  industry.* 

The  amount  of  profitable  labor  that  a  man  can 
healthfully  accomplish,  during  a  life  of  threescore 
years,  can  hardly  be  overrated.  The  examples 
of  pre-eminently  industrious  men  startle  ordinary 
minds,  and  they  surmise  that  some  friendly  hand 
drew  their  portraits,  and  was  too  lavish  in  the 
coloring;  but  facts  are  demonstrative  that  won- 
ders can  be  accomplished  by  industry  in  every 
department  of  human  life. 

WILLIAM  COBBETT,  whom  Ebenezer  Elliott 
designated  as  England's 

"  Mightiest  peasant  born," 

8  See  notice  of  Lieutenant-Governor  Armstrong,  by  Mr,  Buck* 
ingham,  in  the  Boston  Courier. 


INDUSTRY  THE  HIGHWAY  TO   SUCCESS.       115 

is  an  illustration.  He  was  of  low  birth,  and  was 
reared  in  poverty.  While  yet  a  young  man,  he 
enlisted  in  the  British  army.  After  serving  eight 
years,  he  was  discharged,  and  shortly  after  com- 
menced his  political  career.  From  that  time  to 
his  death,  embracing  a  period  of  forty-three 
years  —  during  which  he  traveled  extensively,  suf- 
fered imprisonments  for  political  offenses,  devoted 
much  time  to  agricultural  pursuits,  labored  inces- 
santly as  a  political  agitator,  and  finally  became  a 
member  of  the  British  Parliament — he  produced 
and  published  no  less  than  fifty  books  of  various 
sizes,  and  on  a  variety  of  topics,  besides  editing 
ninety  volumes  of  his  political  papers !  the  effect 
of  which,  on  the  destinies  of  England,  justifies 
the  strong  lines  of  the  lamented  Corn-law  Rhymer, 
who  thus  addresses  his  memory: 

"  Dead  oak,  thou  livest !    Thy  smitten  hands, 

The  thunder  of  thy  brow, 
Speak  with  strange  tongues  in  many  lands, 
And  tyrants  hear  thee  now!" 

Now,  it  is  not  the  character  of  Cobbett  that  I 
commend   to   your    imitation,   but    his    industry. 


116  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

With  all  his  power,  energy,  and  talent,  notwith. 
standing  his  pen  made  the  aristocracy  of  England 
tremble  before  its  terrible  strokes,  he  was,  in  my 
opinion,  "  a  bold,  bad  man,"  actuated  by  passion, 
hate,  and  prejudice,  rather  than  by  high  and 
holy  principles.  Still,  his  laborious  diligence  is 
worthy  of  all  commendation,  and  it  is  to  this, 
rather  than  to  natural  talent,  that  he  himself 
ascribes  his  superiority  over  the  millions  above 
whose  head  he  rose  to  distinction.  A  diligent 
husbandry  of  his  time  was  the  talisman  by  which 
he  achieved  his  prodigious  labors;  and  this  ia 
within  the  power  of  every  young  man,  who  may 
also,  in  his  turn,  astonish  and  shame  the  drones 
among  mankind  by  the  huge  measure  of  his  la- 
bors, if  he  will  employ  his  time  after  the  example 
of  William  Cobbett.* 

Martin  Luther,  Richard  Baxter,  John  Wesley, 
Adam  Clarke,  Richard  Watson,  Napoleon  Bona- 
parte, Elihu  Burritt,  and  a  host  beside,  might  be 


°For  a  very  fair  critique  on  the  life  and  labors  of  Cobbett,  see 
Stanton's  "  Sketches  of  Reforms  and  Reformers,"  page  155. 


INDUSTRY  THE  HIGHWAY  TO  SUCCESS.       117 

quoted  as  demonstrations  of  what  may  be  done 
by  an  industrious  employment  of  moments  dur- 
ing a  lifetime.  But  what  does  it  avail  to  mul- 
tiply examples?  Let  the  young  man  resolve  to 
become  an  example  himself.  Determine  to  make 
the  most  of  your  opportunities,  my  young  friend  j 
and  henceforth  act  on  the  principle  that  momenta 
are  grains  of  gold,  by  the  careful  gathering  of 
which  you  are  to  become  rich  in  knowledge,  in 
experience,  in  honor,  and  in  happiness. 

It  is  often  objected,  that  unceasing  and  assidu- 
ous devotion  to  a  round  of  duties  is  unfavorable 
to  health.  The  pale  face  and  emaciated  form 
of  the  student,  the  feeble  frame  of  the  trem- 
bling dyspeptic,  and  the  dying  aspect  of  the 
flushed  consumptive,  are  pointed  out  as  illustra- 
tions of  the  disastrous  influence  of  toil  on  the 
cnjoym.ent  and  duration  of  life,  and  as  argu- 
ments in  favor  of  self-indulgence  and  indolent 
relaxation. 

Away  with  all  such  pleas  and  arguments,  my 
young  friend !  They  are  the  voices  of  sloth. 
True,  a  man  may  overtax  his  powers,  and  injur* 


118  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

his  health  by  excessive  toil,  as  was,  no  doubt, 
the  case  with  the  unfortunate  HENRY  KIRKB 
WHITE.  He  was  unwisely  ambitious,  and  at- 
tempted tasks  with  a  constitutionally-feeble  body, 
which,  with  the  most  robust  health,  he  coum 
scarcely  have  performed.  Such  a  fact  teaches 
that  we  must  proportion  our  labors  to  our  capaci- 
ties—  not  that  we  are  to  sink  into  supine  indul- 
gence, lest  we  should  be  sick.  Nay,  it  is  not 
unrelaxing  industry,  systematically  pursued,  that 
pales  the  face  and  shortens  life.  The  fact  is,  that 
the  most  industrious  men  are  among  the  longest 
livers;  and,  except  where  'hereditary  diseases  en- 
feeble them,  are  usually  healthy.  Indeed,  indus- 
try is  favorable  to  health.  There  is  great  mean- 
ing in  the  remark  of  an  eastern  missionary,  who 
was  laboring  incessantly  on  the  translation  of 
the  Scriptures  into  the  Hindostan  tongue.  His 
friends  expostulated  with  him,  and  begged  him 
to  relax.  "Nay,"  said  he;  "the  man  who  would 
live  in  India  must  have  plenty  of  work.  If  not, 
he  will  yield  to  the  enervating  influence  of  the 
climate,  and  lounge  away  his  days  upon  the  sofa, 


INDUSTRY  THE  HIGHWAY  TO  SUCCESS.       119 

and  consequently  be  tossing  all  night  on  his 
sleepless  couch  for  want  of  requisite  fatigue. 
Then  comes  dejection  of  spirits  and  prostration 
of  the  whole  man." 

The  missionary  was  right.  Indolence  destroys 
more  than  industry;  and  many  a  drone  who  has 
perished  prematurely,  had  his  friends  been  equally 
honest  with  Sir  Horace  Vere,  would  have  had  it 
said  of  him,  as  that  nobleman  said  of  his  brother, 
when  the  Marquis  of  Spinola  asked,  "Pray,  Sir 
Horace,  of  what  did  your  brother  die  ?" 

"He  died  of  having  nothing  to  do!"  was  the 
bluff  knight's  reply. 

When  I  am  told  of  a  sickly  student,  that  he  is 
"  studying  himself  to  death,"  or  of  a  feeble  young 
mechanic  or  clerk,  that  his  hard  work  is  destroy- 
ing him,  I  study  his  countenance,  and  there,  too 
often,  read  the  real,  melancholy  truth  in  his  dull, 
averted,  sunken  eye,  discolored  skin,  pimpled  fore- 
head, and  timid  manner.  These  signs  proclaim 
that  the  young  man  is,  in  some  way,  violating  the 
laws  of  his  physical  nature.  He  is  secretly  destroy- 
ing himself!  By  sinning  against  his  own  body, 


120          THE  YOUNO  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

he  is  preparing  himself  for  the  insane  asylum, 
or  for  an  early  grave.  Yet,  say  his  unconscious 
and  admiring  friends,  "  He  is  falling  a  victim  to 
his  own  diligence!"  Most  lame  and  impotent 
conclusion !  He  is  sapping  the  source  of  life 
with  his  own  guilty  hands,  and,  erelong,  will  be  a 
mind  in  ruins,  or  a  heap  of  dust.  Young  man, 
beware  of  his  example !  "  Keep  thyself  pure  j" 
observe  the  laws  of  your  physical  nature,  and  the 
most  unrelaxing  industry  will  never  rob  you  of 
a  moment's  health,  nor,  in  the  smallest  measure, 
shorten  the  thread  of  your  life ;  for  industry  and 
health  are  companions,  and  long  life  is  the  heritage 
of  diligence. 

Behold  a  cottage  at  the  foot  of  yonder  mount- 
ain !  On  its  broken  gate  sits  a  lifeless-looking 
man,  with  an  unstrung  bow  lying  across  his  knees, 
and  a  quiver  of  arrows  strung  across  his  shoul- 
ders. A  deer,  with  its  delicate  young  fawn,  cornea 
lightly  tripping  from  among  the  foliage  which 
adorns  the  mountain  slope.  Lifting  up  his  heavy 
eyes,  the  hunter  perceives  his  prey,  and,  for  a 
moment,  kindles  into  something  like  an  earnest 


INDUSTRY  THE  HIGHWAY  TO  SUCCESS.       121 

man.  Leaping  from  the  gate,  he  strains  his  bow, 
fixes  an  arrow  on  its  string,  and,  gliding  from  tree 
to  bush,  and  from  bush  to  tree,  approaches  the 
un watchful  deer;  then  drawing  his  bow,  he  lodges 
an  arrow  in  the  heart  of  the  fawn.  Seating  him- 
self beside  it,  he  triumphs  awhile  in  his  success) 
and  then,  seeking  the  shadow  of  an  adjacent  tree, 
slumbers  away  the  day,  and  permits  the  burning 
sun  to  spoil  his  venison  ! 

Such  is  the  picture  of  an  idle  man,  as  sketched 
by  Solomon,  in  these  words :  "  The  slothful  man 
roasteth  not  that  which  he  took  in  hunting."  I  have 
filled  up  his  slender  outline,  that  the  young  man 
may  study  it  to  better  advantage;  for,  in  this  in- 
stance, at  least,  the  poetic  sentiment  is  literally 
true,  that  the  monstrous  spectacle  of  vice  is  suf- 
ficient to  excite  disgust.  I  greatly  misjudge  the 
reader,  if  he  does  not  heartily  despise  the  idle 
hunter  in  the  above  etching :  if  he  will  transfer 
his  scorn  to  the  vice  the  hunter  personates,  my 
end  will  be  accomplished. 

To  be  above  the  necessity  of  labor — to  spend 
life  in  doing  nothing — is  the  fancied  paradise  of 


122  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

many  youthful  minds.  Yielding  to  these  illusive 
dreams,  they  cultivate  a  hatred  for  labor;  they 
view  the  necessity  which  binds  them  to  the  count- 
ing-room, or  the  workshop,  as  the  galley-slave  re- 
gards his  chain.  They  envy  every  gay  son  of 
pleasure,  whose  empty  laugh  is  heard  ringing 
through  the  street :  hence,  their  labor  is  irk- 
some—  their  temper  sour  and  repulsive.  Their 
manners  become  insulting  and  vexatious  to  their 
employers  j  their  incessant  complainings  annoy 
their  parents,  and  misery  spreads  throughout  the 
entire  circle  of  their  influence.  Thousands  of 
parental  hearts  are  aching  at  this  moment,  and 
thousands  of  employers  are  unhappy  with  their 
apprentices,  solely  from  this  foolish,  guilty  aspira- 
tion after  nothing  to  do,  which  haunts  the  imagin- 
ations of  so  many  young  men. 

But  why  do  young  men  pant  after  an  idle  life? 
It  is  because  they  are  willfully  ignorant  of  the 
important  practical  truth,  that  THE  CREATOR  COULD 

HARDLY  INFLICT  A  GREATER  CURSE  UPON  A  YOUNG 
MAN  THAN  TO  DOOM  HIM  TO  A  LIFE  OF  IDLENESS  . 

It  would  destroy  him,  soul  and  body.     What  is  a 


INDUSTRY  THE  HIGHWAY  TO   SUCCESS.       123 

mind  when  controlled  by  idleness  ?  Let  the  ad- 
mired Tennyson  reply.  Personating  an  idle  mind, 
he  says : 

"  A  spot  of  dull  stagnation,  without  light 

Or  power  of  movement,  seemed  my  soul, 
Mid  onward  sloping  motions  of  the  infinite, 
Making  for  one  sure  goal. 

A  still  salt  pool,  locked  in  with  bars  of  sand ; 

Left  on  the  shore;  that  hears  all  night 
The  plunging  seas  draw  backward  from  the  land 

Their  moon-led  waters  white. 

A  star  that  with  the  choral  starry  dance 
Joined  not,  but  stood,  and  standing  saw 

The  hollow  orb  of  moving  circumstajice 
Rolled  round  by  one  fixed  law." 

If  you  are  ambitious  to  be  "a  spot  of  dull  stag- 
nation," "a  still  salt  pool/'  or  a  motionless  star, 
be  .idle,  and  you  shall  assuredly  reach  the  limit 
of  your  ambition.  But  0,  it  is  a  costly  price  to 
pay  for  idleness !  Nor  is  the  intellect  the  only 
sufferer.  The  heart,  the  moral  character,  and 
even  the  physical  man,  share  in  the  dreadful 
curse.  The  heart  of  an  idle  man  is  an  open  com- 
mon, inviting  the  presence  of  every  odious  vice, 


124  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

which  enters  in  and  makes  it  utterly  loathsome. 
Instead  of  waiting  to  be  tempted,  it  "positively 
tempts  the  devil;"  and  while  "the  busy  man  is 
troubled  with  but  one  devil,  the  idle  man  is  visited 
by  a  thousand."  Idleness  first  draws  its  victim 
from  honorable  labors,  and  then  whips  him  into 
theaters,  cafes,  gambling-saloons,  and  darker  dens 
of  infamy.  It  denudes  him  of  all  moral  beauty 
and  excellency,  strips  him  of  self-respect,  plunges 
him  into  ruin,  disease,  and  degradation ;  having 
bound  him  hand  and  foot,  it  plunges  his  body 
into  an  unhonored  grave,  and  consigns  his  soul 
to  "everlasting  destruction  'from  the  presence  of  the 
Lord,  and  from  the  glory  of  his  power."  Well 
hath  Holy  Writ  described  the  ruin  of  the  indolent 
man!  He  began  by  hating  labor,  and  crying,  "Yet 
a  little  sleep,  a  little  slumber,  a  little  folding  of  the 
hands  to  sleep."  The  first  visible  effect  of  his  sloth 
was  seen  in  his  field  and  vineyard,  "which  was  all 
grown  over  with  thorns,  and  nettles  had  covered  the 
face  thereof,  and  the  stone-wall  thereof  was  broken 
down."  Unalarmed  by  this  growing  desolation,  the 
sluggard  maintained  his  hatred  of  toil,  till,  as  the 


INDUSTRY  THE   HIGHWAY  TO   SUCCESS.       125 

stroke  of  war  falls  upon  an  unsuspecting  hamlet, 
or  a  traveler,  long  on  the  way,  arrives  at  last,  so 
poverty  and  want  overwhelmed  him  in  irretrievable 
destruction. 

Perhaps  my  reader  replies  to  this  deeply-shaded 
scene,  that  such  ruin  is  an  extreme  case,  and  not 
likely  to  occur  to  young  men  generally.  True, 
it  is  extreme;  but  it  is  equally  true  that  vast 
numbers  of  young  men  annually  sink  thus  from 
positions  of  high  promise  into  utter  abandonment 
and  destruction.  But  admit  that  the  idle  youth 
so  trims  between  sloth  and  industry  as  to  avoid 
utter  ruin  —  what  then  !  He  lives  a  useless,  insig- 
nificant life.  His  place  in  society  is  aptly  illus- 
trated by  certain  books  in  a  Boston  library,  which 
are  lettered  "  Succedaneum "  on  their  backs. 
" Succedaneum  I"  exclaims  the  visitor;  "what  sort 
of  a  book  is  that  ?"  Down  it  comes ;  when  lo  1 
a  wooden  block,  shaped  just  like  a  book,  is  in  his 
hands.  Then  he  understands  the  meaning  of  the 
occult  title  to  be,  "  In  the  place  of  another ;"  and 
that  wooden  book  is  used  to  fill  vacant  places, 
and  to  keep  genuine  volumes  from  falling  into 


126  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

confusion.  Such  is  an  idler  in  society.  A  man 
in  form,  but  a  block  in  fact.  Living  for  no  high 
end,  giving  out  no  instruction  —  a  dumb,  despised 
"  Succedaneum  "  among  mankind. 

Nor  is  this  all.  Behold  such  a  man  drawing 
nigh  to  the  end  of  his  existence !  His  pampered 
and  slothful  body  is  tossing  upon  an  uneasy  bed. 
His  pale  face  betokens  his  approach  to  the  hour 
of  final  conflict.  His  life  now  passes  in  sad  re- 
view before  his  closing  eyes !  How  like  a  desert 
waste  it  looks !  Vainly  he  searches  for  some  sol- 
itary sign  that  he  has  not  lived  in  vain.  Naught 
Out  the  dead  level  of  a  sandy  plain  appears. 
Groaning  with  anguish,  he  cries  out: 

"  My  life  has  been  as  the  passage  of  a  ship 
over  the  ocean!  —  as  the  journey  of  a  pilgrim 
across  a  desert !  Not  a  token  of  my  industry, 
not  a  trace  of  my  footsteps !  No,  no  more  than 
if  my  mother  had  not  borne  me  !" 

And  with  this  melancholy  utterance,  he  trem- 
bles, shudders,  and  expires ! 

And  now,  young  man,  having  said  enough  to 
convince  you  that  your  highest  interests  require 


INDUSTRY  THE   HIGHWAY  TO   SUCCESS.       127 

of  you  a  life  of  cheerful  labor,  I  demand  your 
solemn  resolve  to  become  a  true  son  of  industry. 
I  know  all  the  witcheries  of  those  things  which 
incline  you  to  idleness;  the  strength  of  the  tend- 
ency to  sloth  in  your  own  breast,  and  the  many 
failures  at  self-conquest  which  are  recorded  iu 
your  past  history.  But  I  also  know,  that  if  you 
•will  seek  the  aids  of  religion,  they  will  prove  suffi- 
cient for  your  utmost  needs.  Religion  will  teach 
you  that  industry  is  a  SOLEMN  DUTY  you  owe  to 
God,  whose  command  is,  Be  "DILIGENT  IN  BUSI- 
NESS 1"  Who  says  of  every  disciple  of  his  Son, 
"Let  him  labor,  working  with  his  hands  the  thing 
which  is  good,  that  he  may  have  to  give  to  him  that 
needeth."  Religion  will  shed  luster  upon  your 
meanest  toils,  by  converting  them  into  so  many 
acts  of  service  to  almighty  God.  It  will  cheer 
your  labors  with  beams  of  beauty  and  glory,  from 
those  realms  of  eternal  rest,  where  employment 
will  be  unaccompanied  by  toil.  It  will  fill  your 
soul  with  contentment  and  joy,  submission  and 
hope ;  and  arm  you  with  strength  to  "  come  off 
more  than  conqueror"  over  all  foes  to  industry  and 


128  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

purity,  "through  Christ  who  loved  you,  and  gave 
himself  for  you."  The  burdens  of  life  thus 
lightened  of  their  weight,  you  shall  endure  them 
cheerfully,  so  that,  whenever  you  fall  in  the  em- 
brace of  death,  it  may  be  said  of  you,  in  the  words 
of  Aldich, 

"  His  sufferings  ended  with  the  day, 

Yet  lived  he  at  its  close ; 
And  breathed  the  long,  long  night  away 
In  statue-like  repose. 

But  when  the  sun,  in  all  his  state, 

Illumed  the  eastern  skies, 
He  passed  through  gtory's  morning  gate, 

And  walked  in  paradise." 


ECONOMY  AND   TACT.  129 


CHAPTER  VII. 

ECONOMY   AND   TACT, 

S  the  acquisition  of  knowledge  depends  more 
upon  what  a  man  remembers  than  upon  the 
quantity  of  his  reading,  so  the  acquisition  of  prop- 
erty depends  more  upon  what  is  saved  than  upon 
what  is  earned.  The  largest  reservoirs,  though  fed 
by  abundant  and  living  springs,  will  fail  to  supply 
their  owners  with  water,  if  secret  leaking-places 
are  permitted  to  drain  off  their  contents.  In  like 
manner,  though  by  his  skill  and  energy  a  man  may 
convert  his  business  into  a  flowing  Pactolus,  ever 
depositing  its  golden  sands  in  his  coffers,  yet, 
through  the  numerous  wastes  of  unfrugal  habits, 
he  may  live  embarrassed  and  die  poor.  Economy 
is  the  guardian  of  property — the  good  genius 
whose  presence  guides  the  footsteps  of  every  pros- 
perous and  successful  man. 

Economy  is  a  trite  and  forbidding  theme.     The 
9 


130  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

young  man  will  feel  tempted  to  pass  it  by,  and  pro- 
ceed to  the  next  chapter.  But  I  beseech  him  to 
read  on,  since  his  social  advancement  depends,  in 
a  good  degree,  upon  his  frugality.  He  had  better 
be  doomed,  like  the  sons  of  ancient  Jacob  in 
Egypt,  to  make  bricks  without  straw,  than  to  enter 
the  scenes  of  active  life  without  economy  for  a 
companion.  Study  well,  therefore,  young  man,  the 
following  picture : 

RALPH  MONTCALM  is  a  merchant's  clerk,  en- 
joying a  fair  salary.  His  age  is  about  twenty-two; 
his  appearance  is  genteel,  without  foppishness; 
his  manners  are  gentlemanly  and  polite,  without 
affectation.  By  strict  fidelity  to  the  duties  of  his 
station,  he  has  gained  a  high  reputation  for  in- 
dustry, energy,  and  integrity.  He  is  also  under- 
stood to  be  worth  a  few  hundred  dollars,  which  he 
has  invested  with  great  caution  and  judgment, 
where  it  will  yield  him  a  safe  and  profitable  return. 
The  general  impression  concerning  him,  among 
the  merchants  in  his  vicinity,  is,  that  he  will  one 
day  be  a  man  of  some  importance  in  society.  A 


ECONOMY  AND  TACT.  131 

shrewd  business  man  remarked,  one  day,  to  his 
employer,  "  Your  clerk  has  the  elements  of  a  suc- 
oessful  merchant." 

"Yes,  sir;  Ralph  is  destined  to  wield  consider- 
able influence  'on  change/  one  of  these  days;  and 
being  very  economical  in  his  habits,  he  can  hardly 
fail  of  becoming  a  rich  man." 

Such  was  the  reply  of  Ralph's  master.  It 
showed  that  the  clerk  was  acting  on  those  prin- 
ciples which,  in  the  estimation  of  experienced 
men,  insure  success.  Yet  Ralph's  conduct  found 
no  sympathy  from  the  fashionable  disciples  of 
dandyism,  who  filled  situations  similar  to  his  own, 
as  will  be  seen  by  the  following  conversations. 

Ralph  was  walking  home,  one  evening,  from  his 
counting-room,  when  a  fellow-clerk,  who  was  quite 
an  exquisite  in  his  own  estimation,  overtook  him. 
He  was  puffing  a  cigar  after  the  most  approved 
fashion.  Stepping  up  to  Ralph,  he  touched  him 
on  the  arm,  and  said, 

"Good  evening,  Mr.  Montcalm." 

"  Good  evening,  sir,"  replied  Ralph,  to  this  sal« 
utation ;  a  few  commonplaces  passed  between  them, 


132  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

and  then  the  dandy,  taking  out  his  case  of  Ha- 
vanas,  said, 

"Will  you  take  a  cigar  with  me,  Mr.  Mont- 
calm  ?" 

"  I  thank  you,  sir,  hut  I  never  smoke  1"  replied 
Ralph,  with  an  emphasis  which  left  no  room  for 
persuasion. 

"Never  smoke!"  exclaimed  the  astonished 
dandy,  replacing  the  cigar-case  in  his  pocket. 
"  What  on  earth  can  induce  you  to  deny  yourself 
so  delicious  a  luxury?" 

"  It  is  a  luxury  that  costs  too  much,  sir,  for  me 
to  indulge  in  it.  I  really  can  not  afford  it." 

'0,  I  see,"  retorted  the  smoker,  as  he  puffed 
forth  an  enormous  column  of  smoke  from  his 
steaming  mouth;  "you  helong  to  the  race  of 
misers,  and  are  set  on  saving  your  money,  instead 
of  enjoying  life  as  it  passes.  For  my  part,  I  de- 
spise all  such  stinginess,  and  calculate  to  enjoy  all 
the  pleasure  money  will  huy." 

Ralph  took  no  notice  of  his  companion's  im- 
polite insinuations,  but  in  a  kindly  tone  answered : 
"The  use  of  tobacco,  in  every  form,  is  positively 


ECONOMY  AND   TAOT.  133 

injurious  to  health  and  intellect;  as  a  habit,  it 
is  filthy,  vulgar,  and  disgusting,  to  all  but  those 
who  use  it.  Beside  this,  it  makes  a  heavy  and 
constant  drain  on  the  purse.  I  confess,  I  am  too 
stingy  to  pay  so  high  a  price  for  a  luxury  whicl? 
would  shorten  my  life,  fill  me  with  disease,  and 
render  me  disgusting  to  others.  I  would  rather 
save  my  money  for  high  and  noble  uses." 

This  sensible  reply  was  too  much  for  the  smoker 
to  endure.  He,  therefore,  gruffly  replied:  "You 
talk  more  like  a  Puritan  than  a  gentleman ;"  ana 
hurried  forward,  leaving  Ralph  to  his  reflections, 
which  were  certainly  more  agreeable  than  the 
company  of  such  an  empty-brained  exquisite. 

On  another  occasion,  he  was  thrown  into  the 
society  of  another  of  these  contemptible  children 
of  fashion,  who,  in  the  course  of  conversation, 
inquired, 

"  Where  do  you  board,  Mr.  Montcalm  ?" 

"At  Mrs.  Brown's,  in  G street." 

1  ( Indeed  !  How  can  you  think  of  boarding  in 
such  an  unfashionable  street?" 

ult  is  my  fashion  to  seek  respectability,  com- 


134  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

fort,  cleanliness,  and  purity,  in  my  home;  and  all 
these  I  have  at  Mrs.  Brown's." 

"That  may  be;  but  Gr street  is  such  an 

unfashionable  street!  —  and  Mrs.  Brown  is  a  poor 
woman." 

"Very  true;  but  still  I  find  genuine  comfort, 
abundant  food,  and  amiable  society,  at  her  house; 
and  at  a  price  which  I  can  well  afford  to  pay. 
What,  then,  should  I  gain  by  going  up  town  to 
one  of  your  fashionable  houses?  What  do  you 
pay,  where  you  board  ?" 

"I  pay  rather  high  in  proportion  to  my  sal- 
ary, to  be  sure.  My  board  costs  me  six  dollars 
a  week.  But  then  every  thing  is  in  style ;  the 
boarders  are  all  fashionable  young  men,  and  1 
get  into  some  of  the  highest  society  in  the  city 
through  their  influence,  besides  gaining  the  rep- 
utation of  being  fashionable  myself." 

"But  how  do  you  manage  to  meet  all  your 
expenses?  Your  salary  is  only  five  hundred 
dollars  per  annum.  You  pay  over  three  hun- 
dred dollars  for  board.  Your  other  expenses  are 
in  proportion.  I  do  not  see  how  you  can  ever 


ECONOMY  AND   TACT.  135 

expect  to  rise  above  your  clerkship,  or  even  to 
marry,  without  saving  something  for  capital;  and 
saving,  according  to  your  statements,  is  out  of  the 
question." 

"Saving!  Don't  talk  of  saving,  Mr.  Mont- 
calm  !  I  should  be  very  happy  to  be  out  of  debt. 
As  to  business  or  marriage,  I  dare  not  think  of 
either,  unless  some  good-natured  merchant  should 
be  foolish  enough  to  make  me  his  partner." 

"  You  may  well  say  foolish ;  for  who  but  a 
'good-natured  fool'  would  dream  of  taking  you, 
or  any  other  slave  of  fashionable  life,  into  part- 
nership? For  myself,  I  intend  both  to  marry 
and  to  enter  into  business  at  a  proper  time. 
Hence,  I  can  not  afford  to  be  a  fashionable  young 
man.  It  costs  too  much.  I  prefer  the  real  com- 
fort of  a  respectable  home,  and  the  gains  of  fru- 
gality, to  the  ruinous  reputation  of  being  'a  man 
of  fashion.'  I  wish  you  good  morning,  sir." 

'  Good  morning,  Mr.  Montcalm,"  replied  the 
fashionable  young  gentleman;  and  they  parted, 
the  former  to  mount  the  path  of  honor,  the 
latter  to  flutter  a  while,  like  a  stupid  moth, 


136  THE   YOUNG  MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

around  the  lamp  of  fashion,  to  burn  his  wings, 
and  then  to  crawl  in  obscurity  to  an  unhonored 
grave. 

The  reader  must  view  Ralph  Montcalm  in  yet 
another  scene.  It  is  laid  in  the  counting-room 
of  a  merchant,  with  whom  Ralph  had  been  trans- 
acting some  business  in  his  employer's  behalf. 
Just  before  he  left,  a  gentleman  entered  on 
an  errand  of  benevolence.  A  poor  family,  in  very 
destitute  circumstances,  needed  aid  to  keep  them 
from  starvation.  So  stated  the  visitor,  and  then 
he  asked, 

"  Gentlemen,  what  will  you  give  ?" 

"Too  poor  to  give!"  one  of  the  clerks  abruptly 
replied.  He  was  well  known  for  his  love  of  driv- 
ing a  la  tandem  along  the  city  avenues. 

"It  costs  me  so  much  to  live,  I  can't  give  any 
thing!"  said  another,  whose  very  costly  and 
fashionable  attire  placed  his  statement  above  sus- 
picion. 

"Haven't  a  dollar  to  spare!"  bluntly  responded 
a  third,  who  was  remarkable  for  being  almost 
buried  under  a  load  of  debts. 


ECONOMY  AND  TACT.  137 

"Put  me  down  two  dollars/'  said  Ralph,  in  a 
half  whisper,  to  the  collector,  as  he  quietly  handed 
him  that  amount. 

"  How  is  it  that  you  can  afford  to  give  to  every 
one  that  asks  ?  Your  salary  is  no  larger  than  ours, 
and  yet  we  can  hardly  pay  our  bills.  Giving,  with 
us,  is  out  of  the  question/'  said  the  chief  clerk  to 
Ralph. 

Ralph  smiled  and  replied,  "Gentlemen,  the 
difficulty  is  easily  solved.  You  live  high;  I  live 
moderately.  You  are  extravagant;  I  economize. 
You  wear  the  costliest  clothing,  and  follow  every 
changing  fashion  ;  I  dress  respectably,  and  avoid 
extremes.  You  spend  large  sums  per  annum  on 
cigars,  wines,  riding,  theaters,  operas,  balls,  and 
costly  suppers;  I  deny  myself  these  indulgences, 
partly  because  of  their  cost,  and  partly  because 
of  their  immoral  tendencies.  My  pleasures  are 
intellectual;  they  afford  me  higher  and  purer 
enjoyment  than  yours,  and  cost  much  less. 
Hence,  while  you  are  poor,  I  have  money  in- 
vested, and  something  to  spare  to  alleviate  the 
sorrows  of  others.  Good  morning,  gentlemen." 


138  THE  YOUNG   MAN  8  COUNSELOR. 

Such  is  the  example  of  economy  which  I  desire 
to  urge  upon  you,  young  man,  for  your  imitation. 
Not  a  miserly  meanness,  which  denies  itself  the 
common  comforts  of  life,  and  shuts  itself  within 
walls  of  triple  steel  against  the  appeals  of  benev- 
olence; but  such  a  manly,  generous  habit  of  ex- 
pending your  resources  as  will  tend  to  improve 
your  condition,  without  debasing  your  nature  — 
to  make  you  a  man  of  property,  without  sinking 
you  to  the  sordid  level  of  a  miser.  The  princi- 
ples, which  make  such  admirable  economists  as 
young  Ralph  Montcalm,  are  : 

1.  ALWAYS  LET  YOUR  EXPENDITURE  BE  LESS 
THAN  YOUR  INCOME.  This  is  the  grand  element 
of  success  in  acquiring  property.  To  carry  it 
out  requires  resolution,  self-denial,  self-reliance. 
But  it  must  be  done,  or  you  must  be  a  poor  man 
all  through  life.  If,  for  example,  your  income  is 
six  dollars  a  week,  you  must  live  on  Jive,  or  four, 
if  you  can  with  decency.  But  further : 

2.  LITTLE  EXPENSES  MUST  BE  CAREFULLY 
GUARDED  AGAINST.  I  once  saw  a  full-grown  cat- 
erpillar borne  along  the  garden  path  by  an  army 


ECONOMY   AND   TACT.  139 

of  tiny  ants,  which  had  made  him  their  captive; 
at  another  time  I  saw  an  insect,  somewhat  resem- 
bling a  dragon-fly,  bearing  off  a  caterpillar  by  his 
own  unaided  strength.  In  both  cases  the  victim 
perished ;  and  it  made  little  difference  whether  he 
was  in  the  hands  of  a  single  dragon-fly,  or  of  an 
army  of  ants.  Thus,  many  little  expenses  are  as 
fatal  to  a  young  man's  prosperity  as  a  great  spec- 
ulation which  ruins  at  a  single  blow.  The  former 
will  as  surely  bear  him  to  the  grave  of  poverty  as 
the  latter.  Hence,  the  pence  so  foolishly  spent  on 
cigars,  confectionery,  fruit,  ice-creams,  soda-water, 
etc.,  must  be  retained  in  the  purse  of  the  young 
man  who  intends  to  take  rank  in  respectable  soci- 
ety. If  they  escape,  they  will,  in  spite  of  all  his 
resistance,  be  like  the  ant  army,  and  will  bear 
him  to  a  pauper's  grave.  Deny  thyself,  in  little 
as  in  great  things,  is  a  necessary  condition  of 
prosperity. 

3.    AVOID    THE   HABIT    OP    GETTING    INTO    DEBT. 

Attention  to  the  above  maxims  will  make  the  ob- 
servance of  this  one  easy.  Still,  there  is,  to  some 
minds,  such  a  fascination  in  the  act  of  buying  on 


140  THE  YOUNG   MAN*S   COUNSELOR. 

credit,  that  they  will  do  it  even  when  they  have 
cash  in  their  pockets.  You  must  avoid  this  prac- 
tice. Pay  for  what  you  purchase,  at  least  till 
you  begin  business;  and  then  buy  very  cautiously, 
and  you  will  rarely  buy  what  you  do  not  need. 
To  be  in  debt  is  to  be  enslaved;  it  is  a  prolific 
source  of  care ;  an  occasion  of  temptation  to  ex- 
travagance; it  often  leads  to  falsehood,  dishon- 
esty, gambling,  destruction.  Debt  destroys  more 
than  the  cholera.  Therefore,  young  man,  avoid 
debt. 

4.  AVOID  LITTLENESS.  You  saw  Ralph  Mont- 
calm  ready  to  give  to  the  poor.  You  must  do 
the  same,  if  not  from  pure  benevolence  of  feeling, 
at  least  out  of  regard  for  yourself.  Strict  econ- 
omy may  lapse  into  sordid  covetousness,  and  make 
the  frugal  man  contemptibly  mean.  I  have  been 
told  of  a  wealthy  farmer,  a  professor  of  religion, 
who  invited  a  student,  just  licensed  to  preach,  to 
stay  at  bis  house  during  a  series  of  religious  meet- 
ings he  was  conducting  in  the  neighborhood. 
Wheji  the  young  preacher  was  about  to  leave,  the 
farmer  accompanied  him  to  the  gate,  expressing 


ECONOMY  AND  TACT.  141 

great  pleasure  for  his  visit  and  labors.     Just  before 
they  parted,  he  said, 

"Mr. ,  I  should  like  to  make  you  a  small 

present." 

"  I  thank  you,  sir,"  said  the  young  student,  bow- 
ing acquiescence  to  the  welcome  suggestion. 

The  farmer  then  took  a  twenty-five  cent  coin 
from  his  pocket,  and  said, 

"  This  is  the  smallest  change  I  have.  If  you 
will  give  me  twelve  and  a  half  cents  in  change, 
you  may  keep  the  rest. 

'I  have  no  silver  about  me,"  replied  the  stu- 
dent, as  he  leaped  on  to  his  horse,  scarcely  able 
to  conceal  the  combined  emotions  of  indignation 
and  merriment  which  struggled  within  him  for 
expression. 

,If  this  fact  had  not  been  related  in  my  hearing 
by  the  aforesaid  student,  I  could  hardly  have  be- 
lieved that  any  man  could  have  acted  with  such 
contemptible  littleness  as  that  farmer;  yet  such  is 
the  meanness  of  spirit  which  will  grow  upon  the 
man  whose  economy  is  not  joined  to  some  form 
of  benevolent  action.  Therefore,  I  repeat  the 


142  THE  YOUNQ  MAN'S  COtlNSELOR. 

injunction  —  avoid  littleness,  by  carefully  culti- 
vating a  generous,  philanthropic  spirit,  amidst  all 
your  plans  of  frugality. 

There  is  another  element  of  success  which  is 
Worthy  of  a  few  thoughts.  I  mean  tact,  or  versatil- 
ity —  a  power  of  self-adaptation  to  every  new  open- 
ing of  Providence.  A  man  of  tact  immediately 
fills  a  new  position  with  naturalness,  and,  however 
he  himself  may  feel  its  embarrassments,  he  forces 
the  impression  upon  others  that  he  is  just  the  man 
for  the  place.  On  the  other  hand,  without  tact,  a 
man  is  impracticable.  Change  his  sphere,  and  he 
acts  stiffly,  awkwardly;  he  is  like  a  stiff-jointed 
country  recruit  at  his  first  drill;  so  uncouth  are 
his  movements  that  lookers-on  exclaim,  "He  will 
never  do  1"  Hence,  his  friends  lose  their  interest 
in  his  advancement.  They  fear  to  advance  him, 
lest  his  clownishness  should  mortify  their  pride. 
He  is  left  to  pine  in  the  obscurity  of  a  lowly  po- 
sition. 

But  tact  is  the  gift  of  nature.  Yes;  to  some 
extent  it  is  so.  Versatility  is  easier  to  some  than 
to  others.  That  is,  it  requires  less  effort  in  some 


ECONOMY  AND  TACT.  143 

than  in  others,  to  adapt  themselves  to  new  rela- 
tions to  society.  But  even  the  versatility  of  the 
proudest  sons  of  genius  is  the  offspring  of  self- 
culture.  The  man  who  shines  in  an  exalted  posi- 
tion, who  appears  in  it  with  such  perfect  ease  that 
one  might  infer  he  was  born  to  fill  it,  has  gained 
the  confidence  which  inspires  him  with  ease  by 
previous  self-cultivation.  A  man  who  is  true  to 
himself  is  always  in  advance  of  his  actual  posi- 
tion ;  hence,  when  called  to  higher  posts,  he  moves 
into  them  and  fills  them  with  propriety  and  dig- 
nity. This  is  tact.  And  the  mental  training  which 
creates  tact  is  within  the  reach  of  every  young 
man. 

But  what  has  religion  to  do  with  these  elements 
of  success  in  life  ?  It  might  as  properly  be  asked, 
What  has  an  anchor  to  do  with  the  safety  of  a 
ship?  For,  as  the  latter  is  held  at  a  secure  dis- 
tance from  the  shore,  notwithstanding  the  driving 
gale,  so  is  a  young  man  bound  to  the  practice  of 
economy  and  the  cultivation  of  tact  by  the  author- 
itative claims  of  religion.  Pride,  sensuality,  and 
custom  are  like  strong  winds,  beating  life's  young 


144  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

voyager  upon  the  rocks  of  prodigality,  or  the 
quicksands  of  extravagance.  Religion  anchors 
him  fast,  by  her  strong  principles.  She  exacts 
diligence,  industry,  honesty,  by  her  precepts;  sne 
pictures  the  desolation  of  the  spendthrift  by  her 
inimitable  drawing  of  the  Prodigal  Son;  she 
checks  waste  by  teaching  the  doctrine  of  account- 
ability to  God  for  all  we  possess;  thundering  in 
every  ear  her  call  of  "  Give  an  account  of  thy  stew- 
ardship !"  Concerning  the  duty  of  fitting  one's 
self  to  fill  his  station  with  honor,  the  precept  of 
Paul  to  Timothy  is  apposite  :  "  Study  to  show  thy- 
self approved  unto  God,  a  workman  that  needeth  not 
to  be  ashamed."  And  again :  "  Give  thyself 
wholly "  to  the  duties  of  thy  vocation,  "  that  thy 
profiting  may  appear  to  all."  This  exhortation, 
self-applied  by  every  young  man,  would  constitute 
him,  in  a  greater  or  less  degree,  a  man  of  tact. 

Thus  does  religion  in  the  soul  give  vigor  and 
fruitfulness  to  every  element  of  prosperity  in  hu- 
man character.  Viewed  in  all  its  aspects,  it  justi- 
fies the  beautiful  figure  of  the  good  man  in  the 
song  of  the  royal  psalmist :  "  He  shall  be  like  a 


ECONOMY  AND   TACT.  145 

tree  planted  by  the  rivers  of  water,   that  bringeth 
forth  his  fruit  in  his  season :    his   leaf  shall  not 
wither  ;  and  whatsoever  he  doeth  shall  prosper." 
10 


146  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

HARMONY    OF    CHARACTER, 

ABBE  MENNAIS  has  made  this  beauti- 
ful remark:  That  "from  the  sun,  whence 
pour  inexhaustible  floods  of  light  and  life,  down 
to  the  spring  that,  drop  by  drop,  exudes  from 
the  rock,  all  is  ordered  for  a  given  end,  to 
which  all  contribute  in  an  infinite  variety  of 
ways,  that  are  the  more  admired  the  more  they 
are  contemplated.  There  is  not  an  action,  a 
movement,  in  the  universe,  that  does  not  suc- 
cessively contribute  to  the  growth  of  a  tuft  of 
moss." 

In  this  harmony  of  nature — a  harmony  so  com- 
plete and  so  necessary,  that  the  failure  of  any 
one  operation  in  the  universe  would  neutralize 
the  action  of  all  the  rest,  and  denude  the  earth 
of  its  beauty  and  adornment  —  we  may  learn  a 
profitable  lesson  in  relation  to  the  influence  of 


HARMONY  OP   CHARACTER.  147 

character  upon  success.  In  the  preceding  chap- 
ters, I  have  presented  various  elements  of  char- 
acter in  their  relation  to  a  prosperous  life.  They 
have  been  treated  separately;  and,  lest  the  reader 
should  fall  into  the  blunder  of  supposing  that 
any  one  of  them  can  singly  lead  to  success,  I 
wish  to  say,  with  emphasis,  that  as  in  the  opera- 
tions of  nature,  so  in  the  conflicts  of  life,  the 
effect  of  great  success  is  produced  by  the  harmo- 
nious combination  of  each  and  every  valuable 
quality.  The  absence  of  one  qualification  may 
hinder  the  productiveness  of  all  the  rest;  the 
excess  of  another  may  undo  all  that  the  proper 
action  of  the  rest  had  accomplished.  For  exam- 
ple, let  a  young  man  be  industrious,  versatile, 
energetic,  intelligent,  and  yet  lack  integrity,  what 
becomes  of  his  prosperity?  He  may  acquire 
wealth  by  dishonest  means,  but  he  must  live 
without  the  confidence  of  good  men,  and  die  "as 
the  fool  dieth."  Or,  suppose  him  to  have  integ- 
rity, intelligence,  industry,  economy,  and  to  bo 
defective  in  energy,  he  will  sink,  in  spite  of  all 
his  high  qualifications,  beneath  the  obstacles 


148  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

which  lie  in  every  man's  path  to  eminence. 
Or,  again,  let  him  have  an  excess  of  energy,  he 
will  be  rash  and  fall  into  irretrievable  ruin;  let 
him  be  excessively  frugal,  and  he  will  become  a 
miser;  let  him  be  over  versatile,  he  will  be  tho 
"rolling  stone  which  gathers  no  moss;"  an  ex- 
cessive attachment  to  letters  will  convert  him 
into  a  theorist  or  a  book-worm.  Thus,  it  is 
apparent,  that,  to  insure  success,  a  young  man 
must  diligently  attain,  and  prudently  cultivate, 
all  those  particular  excellences  which,  when  pos- 
sessed in  combination,  make  a  failure  next  to 
impossible. 

What  reader  of  holy  Scripture  has  not  felt  a 
most  tender  regard  for  that  interesting  youth, 
who,  in  all  the  eagerness  of  self-confidence,  stood 
complacently  before  the  great  Teacher  and  asKed, 

"Good  Master,  what  shall  I  do  to  inherit  eternal 
life  ?" 

With  what  elation  of  soul  did  that  young  self- 
deceiver  listen  to  the  reply  of  the  great  Heart- 
searcher :  "  If  thou  wilt  enter  into  life,  keep  the 
commandments  !" 


HARMONY  OF  CHARACTER.  149 

Exulting  in  his  fancied  triumph,  the  young  man 
replied,  "All  these  I  have  kept  from  my  youth  up  I 
What  lack  lyetf" 

By  one  stroke -~  a  stroke  severely  kind  —  the 
.Redeemer  prostrated  all  his  hopes :  "  YET  LACKEST 
THOXJ  ONE  THING!"  And  then  he  gave  him  a 
practical  test,  which  at  once  unfolded  his  true 
state  to  his  startled  mind,  and  convinced  him  that, 
however  externally  spotless  he  might  be,  his  heart 
was  supremely  selfish.  He  lacked  that  self-devo- 
tion to  the  glory  of  God  which  is  the  essence  of 
all  true  religion  —  a  lack  that  neutralized  all  his 
excellences,  and  was  fatal  to  his  confidence  in  the 
Divine  favor. 

Young  man,  you  may,  in  like  manner,  fail  of 
true  greatness  through  one  fatal  deficiency,  and 
be  ranked  with  the  men  so  fitly  described  by  the 
great  English  bard : 

"Men 

Carrying,  I  say,  the  stamp  of  one  defect, 
Their  virtues  else — be  they  as  pure  as  grace, 
As  infinite  as  man  may  undergo—- 
Shall, in  the  general  censure,  take  corruption 
From  that  particular  fault." 


160  THE  YOUNG  MAN*S  COUNSELOR. 

LORD  BYRON'S  history  furnishes  a  most  painful 
example  of  the  ruin  resulting  from  the  want  of 
symmetry  in  character.  To  use  the  splendid  dic- 
tion of  MACAULAY,  "He  was  born  to  all  men  covet 
and  admire.  But  in  every  one  of  those  eminent 
advantages  which  he  possessed  over  others,  there 
was  mingled  something  of  misery  and  debasement. 
He  was  sprung  from  a  house,  ancient,  indeed,  and 
noble,  but  degraded  and  impoverished  by  a  series 
of  crimes  and  follies.  The  young  peer  had  great 
intellectual  powers ;  yet  there  was  an  unsound  part 
in  his  mind.  He  had  naturally  a  generous  and 
tender  heart,  but  his  temper  was  wayward  and 
irritable.  He  had  a  head  which  statuaries  loved 
to  copy,  and  a  foot  the  deformity  of  which  the 
beggars  in  the  street  mimicked.  He  was  distin- 
guished by  the  strength  and  by  the  weakness  of 
his  intellect;  affectionate,  yet  perverse  —  a  poor 
lord,  and  a  handsome  cripple." 

What  was  the  result  of  these  opposite  combi- 
nations?—  of  this  lack  of  moral  symmetry?  The 
first  noticeable  efforts  of  his  muse,  being  directed 
by  his  perverse  temper,  brought  him  a  harvest  of 


HARMONY  OF  CHARACTER.  151 

Boatempt  and  hatred.  Stung  to  the  quick,  he 
exerted  his  noble  genius,  and  produced  a  compo- 
sition which  raised  him  to  the  pinnacle  of  fame; 
and  "  all  this  world,  and  all  the  glory  of  it,  were 
at  once  offered  to  him."  Like  a  spoiled  child, 
lie  now  yielded  to  the  violence  of  his  passions, 
and  the  bitterness  of  his  temper.  For  this  society 
cast  him  out  of  its  pale.  He  fled  to  Italy,  and 
there,  by  turns,  cultivated  his  genius  and  grat- 
ified his  passions.  He  lost  his  health,  his  hair 
became  gray,  his  food  ceased  to  nourish  him. 
The  Grecian  struggle  for  independence  roused,  for 
a  time,  his  nobler  sentiments.  He  dragged  his 
diseased  body  to  Missolonghi;  and  there,  at  the 
age  of  thirty-six,  this  "most  celebrated  English- 
man of  the  nineteenth  century,  closed  his  brilliant 
and  miserable  career." 

Who  will  deny  that  Lord  Byron's  life  was  a 
splendid  failure  ?  Why  was  it  so  ?  Not  for  lack 
of  high  qualities  of  mind,  but  through  excess 
of  low  and  degraded  passio,ns.  Had  this  unhappy 
man  subdued  his  evil  qualities,  and  sedulously 
cultivated  what  was  high  and  noble  in  his  nature, 


152  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

his  name  would  have  passed  down  to  posterity  at 
a  model  of  all  excellency  and  beauty.  Neglecting 
this,  he  stands  among  the  images  of  the  past, 
like  some  grim  ghost  on  the  great  highway  of 
life,  scaring  the  advancing  traveler  from  the  ways 
of  self-neglect  and  self-indulgence. 

To  resist  temptations,  to  be  prepared  for  all 
emergencies,  to  rise  to  real  eminence,  to  answer 
life's  great  end,  you  must  avoid  the  example 
before  you.  You  must  cultivate  all  the  condi- 
tions of  success,  and  especially  those  in  which 
you  find  yourself  most  deficient.  See  to  it,  that 
there  are  neither  excesses  nor  defects  in  your 
character,  but  a  harmonious  blending,  a  delightful 
symmetry,  formed  of  fitting  proportions  of  every 
high  quality. 

How  shall  this  symmetry  of  character  be  at- 
tained ?  By  what  means  shall  the  young  man 
repress  his  low  and  debasing  qualities,  develop 
what  is  noble  and  beautiful  in  human  nature,  and 
maintain  a  due  proportion  of  each  element  of  so- 
cial superiority  ?  This  is  a  great  question.  I  will 
attempt  its  solution. 


HARMONY  OP  CHARACTER.  153 

Figure  to  your  mind  a  perfect  circle;  observe 
that  its  perfection  depends  upon  the  equidistance 
of  every  part  of  its  line  from  the  point  in  its 
center.  The  least  deviation  would  destroy  its 
perfectibility.  Harmony  of  character  is,  in  like 
manner,  produced  by  the  action  of  some  great 
central  principle  upon  the  conduct- — a  principle 
whose  comprehensive  grasp  reaches  to  every  act 
and  feeling,  regulating,  stimulating,  repressing, 
or  guiding,  as  circumstances  may  require.  Such 
a  principle,  standing  like  the  central  point  in  the 
circle,  and  wielding  absolute  authority  over  the 
soul,  is  the  only  sure  means  of  producing  that 
harmony  of  character  so  essential  to  success. 

The  stern  heroism  of  REGULTJS,  the  Roman 
general,  may  serve  to  illustrate  the  influence  of 
such  a  principle.  This  brave  soldier,  after  being 
defeated,  and  kept  in  captivity  for  several  years, 
was  sent  by  the  Carthaginians  with  an  embassy 
to  Rome,  to  solicit  a  cessation  of  arms  and  an 
exchange  of  prisoners.  To  secure  his  influence 
in  their  favor,  they  made  him  swear  that,  if  the 
desired  end  was  not  attained,  he  would  return 


154          THE  YOUNQ  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

•to  Carthage.  The  Roman  took  the  oath,  and 
departed. 

Touched  with  the  misfortunes  of  their  general, 
the  Roman  senate  was  disposed  to  treat  for  peace, 
and  retain  the  heroic  Regulus.  But  he,  knowing 
the  weakness  and  exhaustion  of  Carthage,  boldly 
advised  the  continuance  of  the  war.  Upon  this, 
the  senate  rejected  the  overtures  of  the  embas- 
sadors;  and,  knowing  the  fate  which  awaited  their 
general,  entreated  him  to  remain  at  Rome.  His 
wife,  his  children,  his  friends,  with  tears  and 
embraces,  besought  him  not  to  rush  on  certain 
destruction.  He  was  inexorable.  He  had  sworn 
to  return,  and  no  considerations  could  change  his 
iron  purpose  to  keep  his  oath.  He  did  return, 
and  his  ungenerous  foes,  to  their  eternal  infamy, 
put  him  to  death  in  the  most  cruel  and  malignant 
manner. 

What  was  it  that  made  Regulus  proof  against 
the  tears  of  his  friends,  the  love  of  his  wife,  the 
affection  of  his  children,  the  fear  of  death?  —  for 
he  resisted  all  these  to  fulfill  his  oath.  Was  he 
an  unfeeling  stoic?  Nay!  but  he  was  animated 


HAEMONY  OF  CHARACTER.  155 

by  that  noble  principle  of  Koman  honor,  which 
taught  that  death  was  preferable  to  a  false,  a 
mean,  or  a  dastardly  action !  And  it  was  this 
controlling  sentiment,  expelling  or  subduing  all 
others,  which  led  him  to  prefer  his  heroic  death 
to  the  violation  of  a  Roman's  word.  It  also  pre- 
served him  from  sacrificing  the  interests  of  his 
country  to  his  own  safety.  It  made  him  at  once 
a  patriot  and  a  hero. 

Thus,  you  may  perceive  that  the  influence  of 
a  noble  principle  is  like  the  action  of  the  centrip- 
etal force  on  the  solar  system.  As  that  attractive 
energy  steadily  maintains  the  unity  and  order  of 
the  universe,  so  a  lofty,  comprehensive,  authori- 
tative principle  subdues  the  thoughts,  emotions, 
and  actions  to  itself,  and  maintains  a  delightful 
harmony  in  the  life  of  a  young  man,  which  com- 
mands the  admiration  and  confidence  of  mankind. 
It  is  the  wave-line  of  beauty,  which,  running 
through  all  his  conduct,  imparts  gracefulness  to 
each  act,  and  dignity  and  propriety  to  his  entire 
character. 

It  is,  therefore,  a  question  of  great  moment  to 


156  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

every  young  man,  where  to  obtain  a  principle 
sufficiently  comprehensive  and  powerful  to  regu- 
late all  the  parts  of  his  conduct,  so  as  to  form  one 
harmonious  whole.  Some  are  satisfied  with  the 
sentiment  of  honor,  such  as  ruled  the  Roman  pat- 
riot. But  that  is  obviously  not  sufficiently  com- 
prehensive. Your  modern  men  of  honor  are  gam- 
blers, duelists,  tyrants,  Sabbath-breakers,  drunk- 
ards, speculators,  and  the  like;  such  things  not 
being  prohibited  in  the  code  of  honor  as  estab- 
lished by  public  opinion,  and  the  conduct  of 
"great  men,"  falsely  so  called.  Neither  is  the 
law  of  self-respect  sufficient.  It  doubtless  does 
much  to  regulate  life  in  the  sphere  of  home,  but 
is  not  proof  against  the  temptations  which  assail 
men  when  abroad.  Look,  for  instance,  to  the 
alarming  fact,  that  the  theaters,  brothels,  and 
other  places  of  sinful  resort  in  large  cities,  are 
chiefly  supported  by  persons  from  the  country. 
And  who  are  these  men  from  interior  towns  ? 
What  are  they,  when  at  home,  but  rigid  moralists 
in  appearance  ?  Diligent,  self-denying  men  in 
their  general  habits,  but  immoral  on  occasions 


HARMONY  OF   CHARACTER.  157 

and  opportunities.  The  reason  is  obvious.  They 
are  restrained  among  their  friends  only  by  that 
low  standard  of  self-respect  which  fears  degrada- 
tion in  the  eyes  of  others,  but  shrinks  not  from 
being  mean  in  its  own  eyes,  and  guilty  iu  the 
sight  of  God.  It  is  not  at  all  surprising,  that 
such  a  flimsy  defense  against  temptation  often 
yields  to  a  fierce  and  persevering  assault. 

A  fearful  illustration  of  the  absolute  power- 
lessness  of  these  restraints,  when  the  soul  is 
powerfully  tempted,  is  furnished  in  the  case  of 
the  late  Professor  Webster.  If  ever  mortal  man 
was  placed  in  a  situation  to  maintain  a  high  char- 
acter, through  motives  of  self-respect  and  honor, 
he  was  that  man.  Educated,  highly  respectable 
in  his  connections,  moving  in  the  most  refined 
and  elevated  circles  in  social  life,  widely  known 
through  his  connection  with  the  mother  of  Amer- 
ican universities,  the  husband  of  an  accomplished 
wife,  the  father  of  amiable,  lovely  daughters,  and 
the  possessor  of  what  ought  to  have  been  an  ample 
income  —  how  could  he  fail  of  feeling,  in  their 
full  force,  the  claims  of  honor  and  the  demands 


158  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

of  self-respect  ?  For  him  to  do  a  notoriously- 
mean  or  unlawful  act,  -was  to  fall  from  the  loftiest 
pinnacle  of  social  honor  to  the  lowest  valley  of 
shame.  He  knew  this :  hence,  honor  and  self- 
respect  combined  to  keep  him  within  the  bounds 
of  right  and  truth.  But,  alas !  how  ineffectual 
were  these  restraints  !  Failing  to  reach  the  inner 
temple  of  the  soul,  they  left  him  a  prey  to  pride, 
extravagance,  and  passion.  Pushed  by  pride  into 
extravagance,  and  by  extravagance  into  embarrass- 
ments, and  by  these  again  into  acts  of  meanness, 
which,  if  proclaimed,  woujd  wound  his  haughty 
pride,  his  passions  urged  him  to  strike  the  des- 
perate blow  of  murder,  to  free  himself  from  the 
threatening  danger.  Passion  won  the  day.  He 
slew  Patroclus,  but  fell  into  the  hands  of  Achil- 
les. By  striking  a  man  from  existence,  whom  he 
deemed  his  tormentor,  he  became  a  felon,  and  was 
dragged  by  the  stern  hand  of  the  law  from  his 
high  position  to  the  scaffold !  Alas !  that  his 
self-respect  and  his  sense  of  honor  should  have 
failed  to  keep  him  from  moral  deformity  and  from 
crime!  That  it  did  not  is  an  obvious  fact;  and 


HARMONY   OP  CHARACTER.  159 

that  it  can  not  be  relied  upon  in  the  hour  when 
the  tempter  does  his  utmost,  is  equally  demonstra- 
ble, from  the  nature  of  the  case,  and  from  the 
history  of  mankind. 

Far  higher,  therefore,  must  that  young  man 
look  than  mere  honor  or  self-respect,  who  would 
attain  to  symmetry  and  stability  of  character. 
RELIGION  alone  can  furnish  him  with  a  principle 
at  once  potent  and  comprehensive  enough  for  his 
stern  necessities.  Religion  establishes  itself  on 
the  throne  of  the  soul.  It  exerts  its  restraining 
and  transforming  power  over  the  will,  the  intel- 
lect, and  the  emotions.  It  persuades,  entreats, 
and  it  also  commands  with  Divine  authority. 
It  lays  the  soul  under  the  weightiest  obligation 
to  walk  by  its  great,  all-embracing  principle. 
"WHETHER,  THEREFORE,  YE  EAT  OR  DRINK,  OR 
WHATSOEVER  YE  DO,  DO  ALL  TO  THE  GLORY  OF 
GOD." 

Here  is  a  far-reaching  principle,  laying  every 
act,  thought,  and  motive  under  contribution;  de- 
manding the  utter  negation  of  self,  and  the  subor- 
dination of  the  entire  man,  physical  and  spiritual. 


160  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

to  the  law  of  God.  As  the  mysterious  magnet 
points  unerringly  to  the  northern  pole  of  the  earth, 
so  does  this  law  direct  the  soul  of  the  young  man 
to  "  the  glory  of  God."  He  must  repudiate  what- 
ever act  or  thought  dishonors  his  Creator;  he  must 
resolutely  practice  every  thing,  however  it  may  cru- 
cify the  passions,  which  tends  to  glorify  the  God 
of  heaven.  Here,  then,  is  a  principle  suited  to 
his  necessities,  whose  operation,  if  submitted  to, 
must,  from  the  nature  of  the  case,  produce  a  lovely 
symmetry  of  character.  It  will  bind  and  restrain 
unlawful  passion,  create  integrity — stimulate  to 
energy,  to  self-culture,  to  industry,  to  economy,  to 
tact,  to  every  thing  that  develops  noble  qualities 
and  latent  powers.  Nor  are  its  requisitions 
of  impossible  performance.  The  same  authority 
which  announces  the  law  also  vouchsafes  power  to 
obey.  "  Ye  shall  receive  power  from  on  high !" 
"My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee,"  are  the  encour- 
aging promises  of  the  Lawgiver  to  every  willing 
recipient  of  his  command.  And  so  effectually  is 
that  aid  vouchsafed  to  every  submissive  and  be- 
lieving mind,  that,  filled  with  conscious  power,  it 


HARMONY  OF  CHARACTER.  151 

can  view  all  the  temptations  of  the  inner  and  outer 
life,  and  exclaim,  "I  can  do  all  things  through 
Christ,  who  strengtheneth  me  1" 

To  religion,  therefore,  young  man,  do  I  earnestly 
commend  you,  as  the  surest  means  of  attaining 
harmony  of  character.  Only  let  the  "glory  of 
God  run  like  a  silver  thread  through  all  your  ac- 
tions," and  you  shall  stand  forth  before  the  world 
a  symmetrical  man,  and,  hence,  a  man  of  power; 
for 

"  'Tis  moral  grandeur  makes  the  mighty  man." 
11 


162  THE   YOTJNQ   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

VICE  AND   ITS  ALLUREMENTS, 

^ANTE,  in  his  DIVINA  COMEDIA,  describes  a 
broad-shouldered  mountain  rising  before  him, 
directly  after  he  had  gone  astray  "from  the  path 
direct."  Resolute  of  purpose,  he  prepared  to  jour- 
ney "  over  that  lonely  steep ;"  but  he  says : 

"  Scarce  the  ascent 

Begun,  when  lo!  a  panther,  nimble  light, 
And  covered  with  a  speckled  skin,  appeared ; 
Nor  when  it  saw  me  vanished ;  rather  strove 
To  check  my  onward  going." 

Having  overcome  this  beast,  he  adds : 

"A  lion  came  'gainst  me  as  it  appeared, 
With  his  head  held  aloft  and  hunger  mad, 
That  e'en  the  air  was  fear-struck.    A  she-wolf 
Was  at  his  heels,  who  in  her  lameness  seemed 
Full  of  all  wants." 

Trembling  before  this  new  enemy,  he  was  about 


VICE  AND    ITS  ALLUREMENTS.  163 

to  flee,  when  a  form  appeared,  who,  in  reply  to  his 
tears  and  entreaties,  said : 

"  Thou  must  needs 

Another  way  pursue,  if  thou  wouldst  'scape 
From  out  that  savage  wilderness.    This  beast 
To  whom  thou  criest,  her  way  will  suffer  none 
To  pass ;  and  no  less  hind'rance  makes  than  death." 

The  panther  of  Dante,  with  its  soft,  gay  skin,  is 
an  emblem  of  voluptuousness  in  all  its  forms.  The 
lion  is  the  figure  of  ambition;  the  wolf,  of  avarice. 
These  three  beasts  beset  and  assail  every  traveler 
in  the  way  of  life.  First  comes  the  panther,  when 
the  passions  wake  to  life  in  the  young  man's 
breast,  striving  to  destroy  him  with  the  pleasures 
of  lust  and  appetite.  If  by  these  means  he  is 
conquered  —  if  he  permits  himself  to  be  charmed 
by  illicit,  sensual  gratifications — he  sinks  to  the 
level  of  a  brute;  and  his  body,  his  name,  and 
deeds  speedily  rot  together.  If  he  resist  the 
panther,  the  insatiable  cravings  of  ambition  wako 
up,  fierce  as  a  lion,  in  his  soul,  and  he  is  tempted 
to  enter  the  lists  where  men  do  tilt  and  tourney 
for  the  crowns  of  human  fame.  For  these,  if  am- 


164  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

bition  triumph,  he  forfeits  the  crown  of  ever- 
lasting life.  Should  he  resist,  and  seek  distinc- 
tion only  as  a  means  of  honoring  his  Creator,  the 
wolf  of  avarice  next  seeks  his  overthrow.  Thug 
danger  succeeds  danger,  till  he  perishes,  or,  by 
resistance  and  conquest,  attains  a  noble  sublimity 
of  character;  and,  radiant  in  the  rays  of  a  virtue 
gained  through  the  power  of  a  religious  faith, 
passes  in  triumph  through  the  "  everlasting  doors  " 
into  the  eternal  paradise. 

You,  young  man,  are  at  the  age  in  which  the 
passions  and  appetites  begin  to  clamor  for  indul- 
gence. They  glow  with  all  the  fervor  of  fierce 
desire,  and  prompt  you  to  indulge  yourself  through 
means  forbidden  both  by  the  constitution  of  your 
nature  and  the  laws  of  God.  Remember  that 
your  Creator  has  implanted  these  propensities 
within  you  for  high  and  holy  purposes.  They 
are  not  necessarily  debasing  and  imbruting  in 
their  tendencies.  They  only  become  so  when, 
impatient  of  restraint,  a  youth  lays  the  reins  of 
control  upon  their  neck,  and  bids  them  dash,  with 
wild  impetuosity,  across  the  Rubicon  which  flows 


VICE  AND    ITS   ALLUREMENTS.  165 

along  the  borders  between  innocence  and  guilt, 
right  and  wrong.  But  when,  by  the  aids  of 
reason  and  conscience,  the  triumphant  soul  be- 
comes conscious  of  holding  a  high  moral  reign 
over  the  inferior  body,  it  rapidly  rises  in  dignity 
and  in  power.  The  very  strength  of  these  pro- 
pensions,  by  calling  the  authority  of  the  soul 
into  existence,  thus  serves  to  promote  its  eleva- 
tion and  develop  its  greatness.  Determine,  there- 
fore, young  reader,  to  be  above  the  servitude  of 
the  senses.  Let  your  intelligent  soul,  aided  by 
Divine  grace,  point  to  the  limit  of  Divine  law, 
and  say  to  the  foamings  of  passion,  as  God  to 
the  swelling  sea,  "Hitherto  shalt  thou  come,  but 
no  further  j  and  here  shall  thy  proud  waves  be 
stayed!"  and  the  grace  of  Christ  shall  shut  up 
your  desires,  as  his  omnipotence  has  "shut  up  the 
sea  with  doors." 

One  of  your  chief  dangers,  in  this  controversy 
with  passion,  is  found  in  the  fact  that  while  relig- 
ion, conscience,  duty,  cry,  "  RESTRAIN  !  DENY  !" 
the  world,  through  its  pleasures  and  its  adherents, 
cries,  "ENJOY!"  Hence,  temptations  and  prac- 


166  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

tioal  sanctions  to  vicious  indulgence  abound.  Cor- 
responding to  the  burning  desires  within,  aro 
abundant  means  to  gratify  them  without.  These 
means  are  so  contrived  as  to  hide  the  miseries  of 
vice  beneath  dazzling  and  charming  appearances. 
That  wretched  poet,  BYRON,  who  wrote  from  the 
black  depth  of  his  own  tormented  spirit,  thua 
describes  it  in  his  "  CHILDE  HAROLD  :" 

"  Ah  vice !  how  soft  are  thy  voluptuous  ways ! 
While  boyish  blood  is  mantling,  who  can  'scape 
The  fascination  of  thy  magic  gaze ! 
A  cherub  hjdra  round  us  dost  thou  gape, 
And  mold  to  every  taste  thy  dear,  delusive  shape." 

Behold  by  yonder  wayside  a  small  and  delicate 
tree,  covered  with  a  rich  profusion  of  crimson 
bloom.  As  you  stand  at  a  distance,  it  strongly 
resembles  a  peach-tree  covered  with  its  beautiful 
blossoms.  A  nearer  approach  will  undeceive  you. 
Heaps  of  dead  insects  at  your  feet,  and  swarms 
of  living  ones  floating  round  its  bloom,  and  hast- 
ening to  sip  its  fatal  nectar,  proclaim  the  poison- 
ous nature  of  the  gaudy  shrub.  Yon  passing 


VICE  AND    ITS   ALLUREMENTS.  167 

peasant  boy  will  tell  you  it  is  the  "Judas-tree," 
or,  in  Indian  phraseology,  the  "  Red-bud." 

Such  is  vice  to  every  young  novitiate  —  charm- 
ing to  the  eyes,  exquisitely  exciting  to  the  senses, 
it  allures  the  unwary  youth  to  taste  its  forbidden 
pleasures.  He  sees  the  brilliant  gayety  of  the 
saloon  and  the  theater.  He  hears  the  soft,  vo- 
luptuous music  of  the  orchestra  and  the  ball- 
room. He  gazes  on  the  radiant  faces  of  the 
dancers,  and  on  the  excited  crowds  who  throng 
the  portals  of  the  drama.  He  observes  the  se- 
ductive glances  of  the  "strange  woman,"  till  his 
blood  boils,  his  head  reels,  his  desires  overcome 
him.  "There  is  pleasure  in  these  things,"  he 
cries.  Then,  heedless  of  the  admonishing  shade 
of  his  mother,  which  gazes  sadly  on  his  tempted 
spirit,  scorning  the  monition  of  his  moral  guard- 
ian—  his  conscience,  which  cries  "Forbear"  — 
reckless  of  all  but  present  joy,  he  flies  to  taste  the 
forbidden  nectar.  One  taste  only  inflames  his  soul 
the  more.  Like  the  insects  on  the  Judas-tree,  he 
heeds  not  the  swarms  of  perished  ones,  but  tastes 
and  tastes  again,  till  he  is  lost  beyond  redemption. 


168  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

Stand  -with  me,  in  imagination,  young  man, 
at  the  hour  of  midnight,  and  gaze  upon  the  fire 
in  yonder  city.  A  large  cluster  of  houses  is 
wrapped  in  flames,  which,  roaring  aloud,  as  if 
rejoicing  in  destruction,  send  their  broad,  red 
sheets  and  their  ever-darting  fiery  tongues  far 
up  into  the  gloomy  sky.  At  length  they  spread 
to  an  aviary  containing  nearly  a  thousand  beau- 
tiful canary-birds.  Unable  to  remove  them,  un- 
willing to  stand  and  see  them  burned,  their  owner 
opens  the  doors  of  their  prison-house,  and  the 
bewildered  birds  fly  into  the  air.  Mounted  above 
the  flames,  they  hover  for  a  while  in  seeming 
safety.  Now  they  whirl  in  circles  above  the  fear- 
ful blaze,  as  if  held  by  some  irresistible  fascination; 
now,  sweeping  downward  and  upward,  as  if  irres- 
olute of  purpose,  they  linger  a  little  longer,  till 
first  one  and  then  another  drops  into  the  burn- 
ing pile,  and  every  little  songster  is  speedily  de- 
stroyed. 

Very  similar  are  the  fascinations  of  vicious 
pleasures.  Once  within  the  embrace  of  evil,  a 
young  man  has  little  hope  of  escape.  If  he  will 


VICE  AND    ITS   ALLUREMENTS.  169 

not  study  its  terrible  consequences,  before  lie 
enters  upon  its  practice,  he  will  be  either  blind 
to  their  existence,  or  so  fascinated  by  the  spell 
exerted  over  his  passions,  that  his  escape  will  be 
next  to  an  impossibility.  So  deadly  is  the  infat- 
uation of  vice  to  a  fallen  young  man,  that  the 
first  indulgence  by  which  he  enters  the  path  of 
the  sensualist  might  almost  claim  the  lines  which 
DANTE  has  inscribed  over  the  gate  of  hell : 

"  Through  me  you  pass  into  the  city  of  woe, 
Through  me  you  pass  into  eternal  pain, 
Through  me,  among  the  people  lost  for  aye. 
o  o  o  o 

All  hope  abandon  ye  who  enter  heie." 

This  is  speaking  very  strongly,  I  am  aware; 
because  the  sensualist,  whether  drunkard,  deb- 
auchee, or  glutton,  may  be  pardoned  and  regen- 
erated through  the  atonement  of  Jesus  Christ 
He  may,  such  is  the  all-abounding  grace  of  Christ, 
escape  the  bondage  of  vice,  and  win  the  free- 
dom of  a  man  of  virtue.  But  the  enervating 
influence  and  the  ever-increasing  potency  of 


170          THE  YOUNO  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

vicious  indulgences  are  so  great  and  so  mighty, 
that  there  is  little  room  to  hope  for  the  recovery 
of  a  young  man,  who,  having  been  trained  to  pure 
principles,  descends  to  the  corruptions  of  a  bad 
life.  Vice  is  like  the  terrible  cobra  di  capello, 
which  winds  itself  round  its  victim,  and  from  its 
deadly  fangs  pours  poison  into  his  blood.  So 
vice  enslaves  and  destroys.  Whoever  is  charmed 
to  its  embraces,  finds  himself  infolded  in  bonds 
of  might,  and  poisoned  with  a  morbid  venom 
which  irritates  and  stimulates  his  passions  beyond 
the  endurance  of  his  vital  powers ;  till,  with  a 
diseased  body,  a  hardened  heart,  and  a  remorse- 
ful spirit,  he  sinks  to  an  untimely  death,  and  is 
driven  to  stand,  shivering  with  fear,  before  his 
God. 

The  history  of  mankind  is  a  great  commentary 
upon  this  truth.  It  is  crowded  with  cases  of 
those  who,  through  the  allurements  of  the  pas- 
sions, have  madly  rushed  on  ruin.  They  havo 
seen  fortune,  fame,  station,  reputation,  and  even 
empire,  sliding  away  beneath  their  feet.  Voices 
of  friendship  have  stunned  their  ears  with  warn- 


VICE    AND    ITS   ALLUREMENTS.  171 

ings.  Ruin,  with  grim  and  horrid  visage,  has 
stared  them  in  the  face.  But,  spell-bound,  en- 
chanted, charmed,  they  have  heedlessly  pursued 
their  pleasures, 

"  Like  birds  the  charming  serpent  draws, 
To  drop  head  foremost  in  his  jaws," 

till  the  darkness  of  the  second  death  swallowed 
them  up  forever ! 

Do  you  ask  for  particular  examples?  Let  me 
lead  you  to  that  of  MARK  ANTONY,  one  of  the 
triumviri  who  governed  Rome  after  the  assassin- 
ation of  Csesar.  He  was  the  possessor  of  high 
military  talents,  the  idol  of  his  soldiers,  the  hus- 
band of  the  nobly-born  Octavia,  and  one  of  the 
chiefs  of  the  greatest  empire  in  the  world.  This 
man,  as  you  know,  was  met,  in  the  fullness  of  his 
strength  and  in  the  pride  of  his  victories,  by  the 
luxurious  Cleopatra,  Queen  of  Egypt.  Lured  by 
her  voluptuous  wiles,  he  yielded  himself  up  to 
a  life  of  sensuous  prodigality.  The  feast,  the 
dance,  the  song,  absorbed  his  time;  the  artifice 
and  beauty  of  Cleopatra  captivated  his  soul. 


172  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S   COUNSELOE. 

Regardless  of  honor  and  duty,  he  divorced  his 
wife;  reckless  of  consequences,  he  wasted  his 
resources,  neglected  his  fortunes,  and  saw  without 
concern  the  preparations  of  his  rival,  Octavius, 
to  secure  his  ruin.  He  lay,  a  self-abandoned  vic- 
tim, in  the  arms  of  his  artful  destroyer.  No 
sense  of  honor,  no  idea  of  self-respect,  no  fear 
of  overhanging  consequences,  could  rouse  him 
from  his  fatal  entrancement.  But  the  cloud  soon 
burst  over  his  foolish  head,  and  in  the  midst 
of  the  storm,  he  lost  empire,  fame,  and  life 
together. 

Poor  ROBERT  BURNS,  the  bard  of  Scotland,  is 
another  illustration  of  the  power  of  vice  to  retain 
its  victim.  His  talents  raised  him  from  the  ob- 
scurity of  his  early  life  to  distinction.  His  gen- 
erous independence  of  mind  secured  him  the 
affections  of  those  with  whom  he  became  inti- 
mate. With  ordinary  prudence,  he  might  have 
spent  his  days  in  ease  and  independence.  But 
his  noble  spirit  was  in  the  bonds  of  dissipation. 
Many,  but  vain,  were  his  struggles  after  freedom. 
Innumerable  were  his  resolves  to  conquer  the 


YICE  AND    ITS   ALLUREMENTS.  173 

habit  which  charmed  and  disgusted  him  by  turns. 
The  consciousness  he  felt  concerning  the  utter 
hopelessness  of  his  case,  is  touchingly  expressed 
in  the  following  lines,  composed  by  himself,  as  a 
prayer,  in  a  fit  of  dangerous  illness : 

"  Fain  would  I  say, '  Forgive  my  foul  offense,' 

Fain  promise  never  more  to  disobey ; 
But  should  my  Author  health  again  dispense, 
Again  I  might  desert  fair  virtue's  way, 
Again  in  folly's  path  might  go  astray, 
Again  exalt  the  brute  and  sink  the  man ; 

Then  how  should  I  for  heavenly  mercy  pray, 
Who  act  so  counter  heavenly  mercy's  plan  — 
Who  sin  so  oft  have  mourned,  yet  to  temptation  ran  I" 

This  melancholy  subjection  of  soul  to  sense 
continued  to  the  close  of  his  life.  His  last  ill- 
ness was  brought  on  by  the  dissipation  of  a  win- 
fer's  night.  He  died  in  poverty,  the  victim  of  a 
folly  which  weakened  his  powers,  dimmed  the 
luster  of  his  fame,  and  shortened  his  days  on 
earth.  Pitiful  sight,  to  see  a  soul  possessed  of 
such  noble  powers  enslaved  by  a  degrading  vice! 
How  forcibly  does  the  ruin  of  such  minds  prove 
the  almost  omnipotence  of  vice  ! 


174  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

The  case  of  RICHARD  BRINSLEY  SHERIDAN,  the 
most  brilliant  orator  of  his  times,  is  equally  in 
point.  What  native  greatness  must  have  held 
its  seat  in  his  soul !  What  magnificence  of  intel- 
lect was  that  which  gave  birth  to  the  eloquence, 
wit,  and  argument,  which  drew  from  the  glorious 
Burke  the  confession  that  the  effect  of  his  speech, 
in  the  case  of  Warren  Hastings,  was  the  "most 
astonishing  of  any  of  which  there  was  any  record 
or  tradition;"  and  from  the  great  Mr.  Pitt,  the 
acknowledgment  that  it  "surpassed  all  the  elo- 
quence of  ancient  or  modern  times."  Yet  even 
his  great  soul  was  the  slave  of  imperious  pas- 
sions. Indolence,  dissipation,  prodigality,  held 
him  bound  in  chains  of  steel,  and  bore  him  to 
distress,  anguish,  poverty,  and  ruin.  Vain  were 
all  his  agonizing  struggles  after  his  lost  moral 
freedom.  This  man,  whose  eloquence  led  princes 
to  court  his  friendship,  and  compelled  the  admi 
ration  of  his  rivals  in  politics  and  oratory,  waa 
arrested  by  a  sheriff's  officer  for  debt,  on  his 
death-bed.  What  invincible  strength !  What 
irresistible  attractions !  What  power  to  debase 


VICE   AND    ITS   ALLUREMENTS.  175 

and  to  weaken  must  be  lodged  in  vices  which 
could  pull  down  ruin  on  the  head  of  such  a 
princely  intellect  as  that  of  Richard  Brinsley 
Sheridan ! 

I  have  given  these  illustrations  from  the  lives 
of  what  are  called  great  men,  that  the  young  man 
may  see  the  power  of  vice  over  minds  of  the 
largest  capacity.  If  such  men  found  it  impossi- 
ble to  escape,  how  can  others  encourage  the  hope 
of  a  better  fate  ?  Nay,  dear  youth,  the  only  safe 
course  for  you  is  to  RESOLUTELY  LET  ALL  vicious 
INDULGENCE  ALONE.  "  Avoid  it,  pass  not  by  it, 
turn  from  it,  and  pass  away:  then  shalt  thou 
walk  in  thy  way  safely,  and  thy  foot  shall  not 
stumble." 

The  plea  of  every  young  mind  that  enters  upon 
its  novitiate  in  the  school  of  vice,  is  for  only  a 
little  self-indulgence.  The  mind,  while  undefiled 
by  positive  contact  with  the  sins  of  the  senses, 
revolts  from  the  idea  of  a  wholly-vicious  life. 
It  views  such  a  life  as  the  dogs  of  Egypt  are 
said  to  fear  the  crocodiles  which  abound  in  the 
Nile.  So  intense  is  this  fear,  that,  when  impelled 


176  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

by  fierce  thirst  to  drink  its  waters,  they  do  it  as 
they  run,  not  daring  to  pause  long  enough  at 
once  to  satisfy  their  burning  desires.  Thus  does 
the  young  man  propose  to  taste  illicit  joys.  He 
would  only  taste  and  flee,  lest  he  should  be  de- 
voured. Alas !  he  knows  not  the  terrible  power 
he  awakens,  when  he  quaffs  his  first  draught  from 
the  prohibited  stream  of  pleasure !  By  that  one 
act,  he  casts  away  the  talisman  of  his  safety,  self- 
denial;  he  removes  the  curb  from  the  mouth  of 
iust,  he  pours  foul  water  upon  the  virgin  snow, 
and  thus  places  an  ineffable  stain  upon  his  purity; 
he  contracts  guilt,  sows  the  seed  of  remorse,  and 
sells  his  moral  freedom  for  naught.  A  little 
indulgence  ?  Never,  young  man !  Allow  it,  and 
you  are  lost;  blindness  begins  where  vice  first 
enchants.  Beware,  0  beware  of  this  pestilential 
apology!  Be  like  the  knights  of  Tasso,  who,  on 
Armida's  enchanted  isle,  seeing  all  the  entice- 
ments of  sense  voluptuously  prepared  and  inviting 
to  indulgence,  exclaimed : 

"  Let  us  avoid  the  dream 
Of  warm  desire,  and  in  resolve  be  strong; 


VICE  AND    ITS  ALLUREMENTS.  177 

Now  shut  our  ears  to  the  fair  siren's  song, 
And  to  each  smile  of  feminine  deceit 
Close  the  fond  eye." 

Thus  resolved,  the  wiles  and  witcheries  of  Ar- 
mida's  luxurious  groves  and  bewitching  damsels 
were  powerless;  for 

"  To  these  wiles  the  knights  in  triple  steel 

Of  stern  resolve  had  shut  their  souls ;  and,  hence, 

The  tunes  they  sing,  the  beauties  they  reveal, 
Their  angel  looks  and  heavenly  eloquence, 
But  circle  round  and  round,  nor  reach  the  seat  of  sense." 

Thus  must  every  young  man  meet  the  first  ad- 
vances of  vicious  solicitation,  if  he  would  not  be 
drawn  into  hopeless  servitude.  The  saying  of  an 
odd  writer,  concerning  courts  of  law,  is  applicable 
to  the  court  of  pleasure.  He  says,  "A  man  who 
goes  to  law  finds  the  court  full  of  invisible  hooks. 
He  turns  round  to  disembarrass  himself  from  one, 
and  straightway  he  is  caught  by  another.  First 
his  cloak,  then  the  skirts  of  his  coat,  then  his 
sleeves,  till  erelong  every  thing  is  torn  from  him, 
12 


178  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COTJNSELOB. 

and,  like  a  gipsy,  he  escapes  because  he  in  80 
stripped  there  is  no  further  hold  upon  him." 

The  youth  who  crosses  the  threshold  of  the  court 
of  vice  will  find  these  "invisible  hooks"  sharper 
and  in  greater  abundance  than  in  courts  of  law. 
Once  caught,  he  will  be  "hooked"  in  every  direc- 
tion. One  tempter  will  succeed  another,  each 
handing  him  over  to  the  next.  Thus  snared  and 
dragged  from  vice  to  vice,  till  denuded  of  every 
virtue,  he  will  at  last,  in  all  probability,  perish 
in  unutterable  woe.  Therefore,  young  reader, 
beware  of  the  first  lesson  in  vice  I  Your  escape 
from  destruction  depends  on  your  being  strong 
in  resolve  to  resist  the  first  advances  of  illicit 
pleasure.  "The  bird  which  is  insnared  by  one 
leg  is  as  surely  the  prey  of  the  fowler  as  if  it 
were  seized  by  both  wings."  Or  let  one  wheel 
of  a  watch  be  magnetized,  it  will  attract  all  the 
other  wheels  to  itself,  and  thus  as  effectually  de- 
stroy its  correctness  as  if  every  wheel  was  dis- 
placed. Beware,  then,  of  one  disordered  passion— 
one  insnaring  abomination ! 

I  find  a  very  appropriate  illustration  of  the  risk 


VICE  AND   ITS  ALLUREMENTS.  179 

incurred  by  one  indulgence  in  forbidden  things 
in  the  life  of  the  great  Arabian  impostor,  MO- 
HAMMED. In  the  course  of  his  astonishing  career 
of  victory,  he  captured  the  citadel  of  Khaibar. 
A  Jewish  captive,  named  Zainab,  determined  to 
destroy  the  conqueror.  To  accomplish  her  pur- 
pose, she  prepared  a  subtile  poison,  an  art  in  which 
she  was  exquisitely  skillful,  and  introduced  it  into 
a  shoulder  of  lamb,  which  was  designed  for  the 
prophet's  table.  Her  plot  was  undiscovered,  and 
in  due  time  the  poisoned  meat  was  set  before  the 
intended  victim.  Unsuspicious  of  danger,  Mo- 
hammed began  his  repast.  But  at  the  first  mouth- 
ful, perceiving  something  unusual  in  its  taste,  he 
spit  it  forth;  but  instantly  felt  acute  internal  pain. 
In  that  brief  moment  he  had  imbibed  enough  of 
the  poison  to  injure  his  constitution  through  the 
remainder  of  his  life.  Many  were  the  severe  par- 
oxysms of  pain  he  suffered  from  its  potency.  And 
in  his  dying  moments,  while  undergoing  intense 
physical  agony,  he  exclaimed : 

"  The  veins  of  my  heart  are  throbbing  with  the 
poison  of  Khaibar !" 


180  THE   YOUNG   MAN' 8   COUNSELOR. 

Young  man  1  believe  me,  your  first  taste  of 
vicious  pleasure,  though,  it  may  not  be  succeeded 
by  a  second  offense,  may  be  as  fatal  to  you  as 
the  poison  of  Zainab  was  to  the  oriental  prophet. 
HORACE  MANN,  in  his  noble  "Thoughts  for  a 
Young  Man,"  has  well  said :  "  The  capital  of 
health  may  be  all  forfeited  by  one  physical  mis- 
demeanor." He  might  have  added,  that  the  cap- 
ital of  character,  of  moral  purity,  of  self-respect, 
are  all  jeopardized  by  one  transgression.  Pause, 
therefore,  at  the  threshold  of  the  temple  of  in- 
famy; and  though  a  jovial  companion,  a  witching 
seducer,  may  say,  "  Only  this  once!"  do  you  re- 
flect and  reply  :  "  Nay !  on  a  death-bed  the  veins 
of  my  heart  may  throb  with  the  poison  of  this 
one  sin." 

"  Wlierewithal  shall  a  young  man  cleanse  his 
way?"  was  the  question  of  the  Psalmist,  when 
viewing,  as  we  have  been  doing,  the  allurements 
and  power  of  vice.  The  question  is  timely  and 
proper  at  this  stage  of  our  work.  The  answer  of 
the  experienced  minstrel  is  equally  in  point  j 
namely,  u  By  taking  heed  thereto  ACCORDING  TO 


VICE  AND    ITS  ALLUREMENTS.  381 

THY  WORD;"  that  is,  by  securing  the  aid  of  relig- 
ious power.  Without  this  help  from  above,  such 
is  the  tyranny  of  human  passion  and  appetite/ 
resistance  is  almost  vain.  Wrestling  with  their 
strength,  the  unaided  youth  will  be  compelled  to 
exclaim,  with  a  greater  than  himself,  "  0,  wretched 
man  that  I  am !  who  shall  deliver  me  from  the 
body  of  this  death!"  If,  like  that  majestic  apos- 
tle, he  will  fly  to  the  grace  of  Christ,  he  will  be 
enabled  to  join  in  his  triumphal  strains,  and  cry, 
"  Nay,  in  all  these  things  we  are  more  than  conquer- 
ors through  him  that  loved  us!"  and  again  :  "  This 
one  thing  I  do — I  keep  my  body  under,  and  bring 
it- into  subjection." 

Fly,  therefore,  beloved  young  man,  to  the  ark 
of  our  divine  religion  for  safety.  There  the  en- 
ergy, the  strength,  the  power  of  an  inner  life 
shall  be  developed  within  you.  Satisfied  from 
within  yourself,  fortified  by  strong  affection  for 
virtue,  and  intense  loathing  against  vice,  you  will 
be  secure.  Your  character  shall  thus  be  lofty; 
your  purity  unspotted;  your  real  enjoyment  un- 
diminished,  yea,  immeasurably  increased  j  your 


182  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

name,  instead  of  being  "writ  in  water,"  shall  be 
engraved  on  the  hearts  of  the  good,  and  in  the 
records  of  eternity. 


VICE  AND  ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  183 


CHAPTER  X. 

VICE    AND   ITS   CONSEQUENCES, 

WITH  what  graphic  beauty  has  the  pencil 
f  of  MOSES  sketched  the  scenes  of  patri- 
archal life !  How  true  to  human  nature,  how  in- 
structive to  a  thoughtful  mind,  are  his  delineations 
of  those  ancient  characters!  But  their  highest 
encomium  is  their  unquestionable  truthfulness. 
Let  us  study  one  of  these  pictures,  and  carefully 
extract  its  precious  moral. 

Behold  the  venerable  ABRAHAM  standing  in  the 
doorway  of  his  tent,  with  his  vigorous  and  manly 
nephew,  LOT,  at  his  side !  Lot  is  deeply  agi- 
tated. The  uneasy  workings  of  restrained  anger 
are  visible  in  his  flashing  eye,  knitted  brows, 
and  earnest  manner.  Let  us  listen  to  his 
words : 

"  Revered  sire,  our  herdmen  are  at  war  with 
each  other.  Every  day  their  contentions  increase ! 


184  THE  YOUNG   MAN' 8  COUNSELOR. 

Their  strifes  are  not  to  be  endured !     What  can 
be  done  ?" 

Abraham,  calm  and  dignified,  replies,  "  Let 
there  be  no  strife,  I  pray  thee,  between  me  and 
thee,  for  we  be  brethren.  Is  not  the  whole  land 
before  thee  ?  Separate  thyself,  I  pray  thee,  from 

me.     If  thou  wilt  take  the  left  hand,  I  will  go 

» 
to  the  right ;  or,  if  you  depart  to  the  right  hand, 

I  will  go  to  the  left !" 

Upon  this,  Lot  gazes  at  the  lovely  landscape 
spread  out  around  them.  It  embraces  the  fertile 
vale  of  the  Jordan,  rich  in  its  herbage,  its  wells, 
and  fruits.  True,  the  vile  inhabitants  of  Sodom 
live  on  its  borders.  But  Lot  has  a  worldly  heart. 
He  seeks  only  to  be  rich :  hence,  on  selfish  and 
sinful  principles  alone,  he  selects  the  valley  of  the 
Jordan,  and,  separating  himself  from  his  uncle, 
takes  up  his  abode  in  the  vale  of  Sodom,  intent 
on  acquiring  and  enjoying  riches.  Abraham  re- 
moved his  tent  to  Hebron. 

Scarcely  has  Lot  established  himself  in  his 
new  home,  before  an  invading  army  sweeps  over 
the  vale,  and  Lot,  with  his  family  and  flock,  is 


VICE  AND  ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  185 

led  away  a  prisoner.  Abraham,  with  his  good 
sword,  hastens  to  his  rescue,  and  he  is  restored. 
For  a  while,  Lot  now  enjoys  prosperity;  but  his 
children  mostly  fall  into  the  vices  of  the  place, 
and  apostatize  from  God.  The  hour  of  Sodom's 
overthrow  then  arrived.  Through  the  intercession 
of  Abraham,  Lot  is  warned  of  the  impending 
danger,  and,  leaving  all  his  wealth  and  most  of 
his  children  behind,  he  flees  penniless  to  the 
mountains.  On  the  way,  his  wife  falls  by  the 
hand  of  God ;  and  poor,  destitute  Lot,  with  two 
of  his  daughters,  becomes  the  forlorn  occupant  of 
a  mountain  cave !  How  different  was  this  result 
from,  the  sanguine  expectation  which  swelled  his 
breast  on  the  day  when,  for  mere  purposes  of  profit 
and  enjoyment,  he  pitched  his  tent  beside  the  gate 
of  Sodom  ! 

What  a  melancholy  lesson  lies  on  the  surface 
of  this  sketch  !  How  emphatically  it  teaches  the 
doom  of  a  worldly  mind  to  disappointment !  How 
like  a  warning  voice  should  the  fate  of  Lot  ring 
in  the  ears  of  the  youth  who  is  looking  out  upon 
the  vale  of  life,  and  regarding  the  enchanting 


186  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOE. 

devices  of  evil  with  a  strength  of  desire  brooking 
no  restraint !  The  song,  the  dance,  the  revel,  the 
theater,  the  saloon,  the  gaudy  sepulcher  of  de- 
parted virtue,  all  blend  in  the  gay  pictures  of  his 
fancy;  and  he,  like  Lot,  deliberately  resolves  to 
take  up  his  abode  in  the  vale  of  modern  Sodom. 
Not  that  he  intends  to  be  as  vile  as  others.  0, 
no !  He  is  a  perfect  HAZAEL,  contemplating  vi- 
cious excess  with  a  stern  indignation  which  cries, 
"  Is  fliy  servant  a  dog,  that  he  should  do  this  thing  ?" 
It  is  from  limited  indulgence  he  anticipates  a 
harvest  of  delight.  But,  limited  or  excessive,  the 
result  is  the  same.  Sinful  pleasure,  in  all  its  Pro- 
tean shapes,  disappoints  its  victim.  From  the  first 
delirious,  intoxicating  draught,  to  the  last  dreg  in 
the  cup,  all  is  disappointment.  Hear  a  veteran  in 
the  ranks  of  folly  testify : 

"  When  all  is  won  that  all  desire  to  woo, 
The  paltry  prize  is  hardly  worth  the  cost. 
Youth  wasted,  mind  degraded,  honor  lost, 
These  are  thy  fruits,  successful  passion — these  I 
If,  kindly  cruel,  early  hope  is  crost, 
Still  to  the  last  it  rankles,  a  disease 
Not  to  be  cured  when  love  itself  forgets  to  please." 


VICE  AND  ITS   CONSEQUENCES.  187 

•  But  why,  if  the  first  experiences  of  young  profli- 
gates are  succeeded  by  disappointment,  do  they 
persist  ?  Because  they  vainly  hope  that  other 
untried  indulgences  will  yield  greater  pleasure. 
They  fear  the  contempt  of  their  more  daring 
associates,  but  chiefly  because  passion  is  a  tyrant, 
a  perfect  Haynau.  When  once  freed  from  the 
golden  chain  of  innocence,  it  usurps  absolute  au- 
thority, and  drives  its  victim,  like  a  helpless  slave, 
to  ruin.  The  drunkard  knows  but  too  well  the 
terrible  power  of  his  ever-craving  appetite.  His 
reason,  his  affections,  his  self-respect,  his  dearest 
friends,  his  present  and  eternal  interests,  all  stand 
at  the  bar  of  this  inward  monster,  and  plead  in 
vain.  It  impels  him,  in  spite  of  himself,  to  sink 
into  deeper  misery.  The  same  is  true  of  every 
other  vicious  habit.  He  who  enters  upon  a  vicious 
career,  is  like  the  man  who  is  lured  by  a  false 
light  to  venture  on  the  treacherous  quagmire ; 
once  sunk  in  its  fatal  mud,  every  attempt  to  extri- 
cate himself  only  sinks  him  still  deeper.  Terrible, 
indeed,  are  his  efforts,  awful  his  apprehensions, 
fearful  is  his  prospect  of  destruction.  If  he  does 


188          THE  TouNa  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

escape,  it  is  as  if  by  miracle.  "  He  is  carnal,  sold 
under  sin."  He  has  surrendered  the  helm  of  his 
soul  to  his  baser  nature.  Nothing  short  of  a 
complete  abandonment  of  himself  to  religion  can 
restore  that  lost  helm  to  the  hand  of  reason. 
That  step  he  will  not  take,  and,  therefore,  he 
can  not  pause  in  his  wicked  career.  And  this  is 
one  portion  of  a  sinner's  penalty.  The  pleasure 
he  invited  as  a  guest  to  beguile  his  hours  of 
leisure,  becomes  his  master.  He  sees  his  ruin, 
yet  rushes  upon  it.  Abject,  stung  to  the  quick, 
irritated,  agonized,  and  tortured,  he  writhes  in 
vain  struggles  to  free  himself  from  his  tyrant. 
Despondency  seizes  his  mind,  and  often,  as  in  the 
melancholy  case  of  the  late  Dr.  Morton,  a  young 
English  physician,  he  concludes  the  tragedy  by 
rushing,  an  unbidden  guest,  into  the  spirit-world. 

This  Dr.  Morton,  who  appears  to  have  been  a 
man  of  genius,  had  fallen  into  the  vice  of  drunk- 
enness. Many  and  fierce  were  his  vain  struggles 
for  the  mastery,  as  may  be  seen  by  the  following 
extract  from  his  journal : 

"I  have  only  to  remember  my  dreadful  suffer- 


VICE  AND  ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  189 

ings  the  morning  after  taking  so  much  beer  or 
wine.  Low  suicidal  feelings,  despondent  and 
gloomy  thoughts,  pulse  one  hundred  to  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty,  head  dizzy,  limbs  tremulous, 
pains  about  the  heart,  flatulence  and  eructations, 
incapacity  for  duty  of  any  kind,  temper  irritable 
and  overbearing,  expensive  habits,  loss  of  time, 
forgetfulness  of  engagements,  every  thing  in  dis- 
order— and  all  for  what  ?  Because  I  choose  to  take 
two  pints  of  ale,  or  half  a  bottle  of  wine." 

As  already  intimated,  this  accomplished  but 
unhappy  man,  finding  himself  enslaved  to  his 
darling  vice,  died  by  his  own  hand  at  the  early 
age  of  thirty-six — a  sad  monument  of  the  terrible 
effect  of  vice  on  a  superior  mind  ! 

BYRON  has  well  described  this  despairing  gloom 
which,  sooner  or  later,  overspreads  the  sinning 
soul: 

"  And  vice,  that  digs  her  own  voluptuous  tomb, 
Had  buried  long  his  hopes,  no  more  to  rise, 
Pleasure's  palled  victim  !    Life  abhorring  gloom 
Wrote  on  his  faded  brow,  cursed  Cain's  unresting  doom," 

This  power  of  passion  to  coerce   reason   has  a 


190         THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR, 

remarkable  illustration  in  the  case  of 
WACHS,  a  German  youth,  who  was  apprenticed 
to  one  Schneeweisser,  a  carpenter,  at  Soiling. 
This  lad,  the  eon  of  a  small  farmer,  lived  an 
irreproachably-moral  life  till  his  eighteenth  year, 
when  he  became  dissolute  in  his  habits.  He  then 
grew  wanton,  riotous,  disorderly,  and  lazy;  fond 
of  dress,  and  excessively  vain. 

On  the  eve  of  a  public  festival,  this  unhappy 
lad  fell  into  the  company  of  a  young  man  who 
ostentatiously  displayed  a  watch.  Wachs,  who 
did  not  own  a  watch  himself,  suddenly  conceived 
a  desire  to  do  so.  This  desire  rapidly  grew  into 
an  irresistible  passion.  Happening  to  enter  a  shoe- 
maker's house,  shortly  after,  to  have  his  boots 
mended,  his  eye  lighted  on  that  gentleman's 
watch,  which  hung  upon  a  nail  in  the  wall  beside 
him.  Just  at  that  moment  the  shoemaker's  wife 
went  out  to  market,  and  the  children  also  left 
the  house  to  play  in  the  garden.  Wachs  and  the 
shoemaker  were  alone.  Impelled  by  his  passion 
to  obtain  a  watch,  the  dissolute  youth  stole  behind 
his  victim,  and,  striking  him  with  a  large  hammer 


VICE  AND  ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  191 

on  the  temple,  he  killed  him  with  a  single  blow. 
The  wife  returning  shortly  after,  he  murdered  her 
also,  lest  she  should  betray  him.  To  make  dis- 
covery impossible,  he  killed  "  Little  Michael/' 
their  son,  and,  as  he  supposed,  their  daughter, 
Catherine;  who,  however,  subsequently  recovered 
from  her  wound,  and  became  the  principal  witness 
on  his  trial,  which  resulted  in  his  decapitation  by 
the  sword.* 

This  is  an  extreme  case,  I  admit,  but  it  is  val- 
uable because  it  shows  the  fearful  weakness  of  the 
man  who  once  surrenders  himself  to  the  control 
of  his  propensities.  It  proves  the  trite  but  ter- 
rible truth,  that  there  is  no  propensity  which  may 
not,  when  fostered  by  indulgence  and  favored  by 
circumstances,  grow  into  an  irresistible  passion,  and 
hu-rry  a  man  into  the  commission  of  monstrous 
crimes ! 

Another  consequence  of  vice  is  the  remorseful 
sense  of  shame,  the  guilty  consciousness  of  self- 

°  See  Narratives  of  Remarkable  Criminal  Trials.    From  the  Ger- 
man of  Anaelm  Hitter  Von  Feuerbach.     Harper's  edition. 


THE   YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR 


degradation  which  overwhelms  a  young  sinner. 
No  sooner  does  he  quit  the  infamous  haunts  of 
slaughtered  innocence,  and  retire  to  the  silence 
and  the  solitude  of  his  chamber,  than  the  image 
of  his  offense  fastens  upon  his  soul  with  all  the 
tenacity  with  which  ghoul  and  vampire  are  said  to 
seize  their  prey.  Who  can  tell  the  full  bitterness 
of  the  young  soul  when  reviewing  its  fall?  The 
first  violated  Sabbath,  or  the  first  revel  over  the 
foaming  wine-cup,  or  the  first  forbidden  visit  to 
the  theater,  the  gambler's  den,  or  the  chamber 
of  pollution,  is  followed  by  fierce  self-reproaches, 
by  unutterable  regrets,  by  unspeakable  stingings 
of  conscience  !  With  eyes  downcast,  hands 
clasped,  and  heart  burning  with  anguish,  the 
young  man  cries,  "  What  have  I  done  ?  Fool 
that  I  was,  to  listen  to  my  tempters !  What 
would  my  mother  feel,  if  she  knew  my  guilt? 
How  can  I  ever  look  her  in  the  face  again,  with 
this  spot  upon  my  soul  ?  And  0,  if  I  should  die 
in  this  guilty  state  !  Alas  !  alas  !  I  am  undone  I" 
Thus  do  showers  of  burning  thoughts  fall  upon 
his  tortured  soul  with  a  severity  which  Coleridge 


VICE  AND  ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  193 

compares  to  "needle-points  of  frost  drizzling  on  a 
bald  and  feverish  head."  At  length,  with  jiany 
a  weak  resolve  to  go  no  further  in  sin,  he  falls 
asleep.  When  he  awakes,  his  terrors  have  de- 
parted. His  propensities  resume  their  sway,  and 
he  is  hurried  into  blacker  transgressions.  By 
persevering  in  sin,  he  succeeds  in  hardening  his 
conscience,  till,  for  the  time  being,  it  ceases  its 
terrors,  and  he  sins  on,  "  neither  fearing  God  nor 
regarding  man." 

It  is  impossible  to  predict  with  certainty  the 
specific  mode  by  which  an  abandoned  youth  will 
reach  the  goal  of  ruin.  Neither  can  it  be  tola 
how  long  or  how  short  will  be  his  career.  These 
things  depend  upon  which  propensity  plays  the 
tyrant  over  him ;  upon  his  opportunities  for  self- 
indulgence  ;  upon  his  caution ;  upon  many  cir- 
cumstances entirely  beyond  his  control.  But  this 
much  is  certain :  without  speedy  and  effectual 
reform,  HIS  RUIN  is  A  MORAL  CERTAINTY  !  How 
long  it  will  be  delayed,  or  in  what  form  it  will 
come,  can  not  be  predicted;  but  come  it  will,  as 

eurely    as    consequence    succeeds    to    cause.      For, 

13 


194          THE  youNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

"though  hand  joined  in  hand,  the  wicked  shall  not 
go  unpunished." 

Sometimes  the  ruin  of  a  vicious  youth  overtakes 
him  with  the  swiftness  of  an  arrow,  as  the  fol- 
lowing fact  will  show.  A  fine,  noble-looking 
youth  —  I  will  call  him  REGINALD  —  who  had 
been  piously  trained,  left  his  virtuous  home  to 
dwell  in  a  large  city.  At  first,  (every  returning 
Sabbath  beheld  him  an  attentive  listener  in  the 
house  of  God.  But  he  fell  into  the  company  of 
the  wicked;  resisted  their  seductions  a  while, 
then  yielded.  He  now  forsook  the  church  for 
the  haunts  of  pleasure.  Being  ardent  in  his  tem- 
perament, he  partook  eagerly  of  every  form  of 
sin.  The  flowing  bowl,  the  theater,  the  gambling- 
saloon,  the  brothel,  witnessed  his  fiery  zeal  in  the 
ways  of  iniquity.  But  his  race  was  short — his 
ruin  terrible  and  speedy.  Three  months  of  guilty 
abomination  sufficed  to  break  down  his  physical 
constitution,  and  to  lay  his  fine  and  noble  form, 
a  pitiful  wreck,  upon  a  dying  bed.  Let  us  take 
our  stand  beside  him,  and  witness  the  end  of  a 
vicious  life. 


VICE  AND  ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  195 

Mark  his  pale,  attenuated  face,  covered  with 
blotches,  and  distorted  with  the  combined  ago- 
nies of  mind  and  body  I  How  languid  and  dull 
are  his  glassy  eyes  I  How  painful  his  breathing  1 
How  that  deep,  hoarse  cough  incessantly  racks  hia 
almost  fleshless  body !  But  hearken  !  some  one 
raps  at  the  door !  See  !  the  patient  turns  his  eyea 
upon  the  intruder,  with  an  expression  of  horror; 
then  nervously  clutching  the  bedclothes,  he  buriea 
his  head  beneath  the  folds,  and  obstinately  refuses 
all  conversation ! 

Who  is  this  visitor?  His  countenance  com- 
bines commanding  dignity  with  bland  benevo- 
lence, and  is  any  thing  but  offensive.  Why,  then, 
does  the  dying  youth  feel  so  disturbed  by  his 
presence  ?  The  reader  will  understand  the  rea- 
,son,  when  he  learns  that  he  is  Reginald's  former 
pastor.  His  person  revives  the  memory  of  purer 
days,  and  the  guilty  sufferer  dares  not  to  see 
him. 

As  Reginald  will  not  converse,  the  good  man 
offers  a  prayer,  and,  with  his  hand  upon  the  door- 
latch,  is  preparing  to  leave.  But  now  the  dying 


196  THE  YOUNQ  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

victim  uncovers  his  face,  sits  up  in  the  bed,  and 
cries, 

(<  Stop  a  minute,  sir  I" 

The  pastor  returns  to  the  bedside.  The  suf- 
ferer's effort  has  exhausted  his  strength,  and  he 
has  fallen  back  upon  the  pillows.  As  the  min- 
ister bends  over  to  catch  his  words,  Reginald 
throws  his  skinny  arms  around  his  neck,  and 
whispers,  with  awful  emphasis,  "I'M  LOST!" 
Then,  burying  himself  once  more  beneath  the 
clothes,  he  resolutely  refuses  all  further  conver- 
sation. Reader,  that  utterance  was  his  last,  for 
he  never  spoke  again !  How  awfully  did  that 
dear,  ruined  young  man  verify  the  saying  of 
Solomon  :  "  With  her  much  fair  speech  she  causeth 
him  to  yield;  with  the  flattering  of  her  lips  she 
forced  him.  He  goeth  after  her  straighticay,  as 
an  ox  goeth  to  the  slaughter,  or  as  a  fool  to  the 
conviction  of  the  stocks;  till  a  dart  strike  through 
his  liver.  As  a  bird  hasteth  to  the  snare,  and 
knoweth  not  that  it  is  for  his  life!" 

There  can  bo  no  doubt  that  such  cases  as  this 
are  far  from  being;  rare.  Vice  is  a  swift  and 


VICE  AND  ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  197 

sure  destroyer,  and  a  youth  who  embraces  her 
is  as  the  early  flower  exposed  to  the  untimely 
frost.  Those  who  have  perished  thus  are  named 
"  Legion  j"  for  they  are  many — enough  to  con- 
vince every  novice  that  he  has  no  security  that 
he  shall  escape  a  similar  fate. 

Nor  is  it  always  by  disease  alone  a  young  profli- 
gate finds  a  speedy  and  fatal  termination  to  his 
career.  Ruin  is  a  Briareus  with  many  hands.  As 
some  large  rivers  debouch  to  the  ocean  through 
many  mouths,  so  has  vice  many  streams  that  lead 
to  death.  The  vices,  like  the  Furies,  are  sisters, 
and  no  man  can  espouse  one  without  admitting 
the  rest  into  his  home :  hence,  no  sinner  can 
tell  whither  his  besetting  sin  will  conduct  him. 
Let  the  following  fact  illustrate  and  enforce  this 
thought : 

A  young  man,  whom  I  will  name  ARTHUR, 
nineteen  years  of  age,  educated,  handsome,  of 
fascinating  manners,  and  manly  spirit,  visited  a 
certain  city  in  search  of  business.  There  he 
unhappily  fell  into  dissolute  society,  and  began 
to  run  the  giddy  rounds  of  deep  dissipation.  A 


198  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

few  months  served  to  exhaust  his  finances  and  to 
run  him  into  debt.  A  bill  lay  upon  his  table, 
one  day,  which  he  was  required  to  pay  the  next 
morning.  Not  knowing  what  to  do,  he  took  the 
fatal  step  of  selling  an  opera-glass,  which  he  had 
borrowed  from  a  gay  friend,  and  thus  paid  the 
bill.  His  friend  called  for  the  glass.  Arthur, 
though  much  confused,  frankly  confessed  his 
fault,  and  promised  to  obtain  funds  from  home 
to  remunerate  the  loser.  But  his  quondam  friend 
had  the  heart  of  a  Shylock,  and  hurried  the  as- 
tonished and  mortified  young  man  to  the  police 
court,  charging  him  with  the  crime  of  steal- 
ing the  opera-glass.  After  a  summary  hearing, 
he  was  committed  for  trial,  and  immured  in 
jail. 

He  was  placed  in  a  cell  with  another  prisoner — 
a  young  man.  As  soon  as  he  found  himself  there, 
the  full  measure  of  his  disgrace  rose  before  his 
agonized  mind.  Casting  himself  to  the  ground, 
he  cried  to  his  fellow-prisoner,  in  tones  of  exqui- 
site anguish, 

"  Cut  my  throat !  kill  me  !  trample  me  to  death  ! 


VICE  AND  ITS   CONSEQUENCES.  199 

My  parents !  How  can  I  ever  look  them  in  the 
face  again  ?" 

He  grew  more  and  more  excited,  beat  his  head 
upon  the  stone  floor  with  such  violence  that  his 
companion  seized  him  and  called  lustily  for  aid. 
The  turnkey  came,  and  judging  from  his  parox- 
ysms that  he  was  in  a  fever,  called  for  a  physi- 
cian, who  pronounced  him  to  be  in  imminent 
danger  of  dying.  A  distinguished  philanthropist 
was  sent  for,  who  bailed  the  young  man,  and  con- 
veyed him  to  his  own  residence.  Touched  by 
the  affectionate  kindness  of  this  benevolent  man, 
the  youth  stated  that  his  father  was  a  clergyman, 
and  his  relatives  wealthy.  The  peril  of  life  being 
very  great,  his  generous  protector  wrote  an  account 
of  the  sad  affair,  and  summoned  the  father  to  his 
son's  death-bed.  While  the  letter  was  on  its  way, 
during  an  interval  of  calmness,  he  was  asked  if 
he  would  not  like  to  see  his  father  once  more. 

"Ono!  Let  me  die  rather — kill  me!  I  have 
brought  dishonor  upon  his  gray  hairs,  and  how 
can  I  look  upon  his  face  again?  Let  me  die, 
but  have  pity  on  my  poor  father  I" 


200  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

The  father  arrived.  "Your  father  is  below, 
waiting  to  see  you/'  said  his  attendant. 

The  sufferer  uttered  a  piercing  groan,  covered 
his  face,  and  exclaimed, 

"I  can't  see  him!  I  can't  —  I  can't!  Speak 
to  him  for  me ;  tell  him  I  died — " 

Here  the  venerable  father  entered,  and  stood 
transfixed  with  agony  beside  his  dying  son  ! 
What  a  scene !  That  noble  boy,  that  cherished 
child,  polluted  with  profligate  habits,  disgraced  by 
crime,  dying  of  mental  torture  —  and  that  aged 
minister,  that  white-haired  father,  gazing  unutter- 
able pity,  and  pierced  with  anguish  that  beggars 
description !  Can  aught  of  misery  be  fancied 
more  exquisite  or  excruciating?  Yet,  young  man, 
that  scene  grew  out  of  just  such  indulgences  as 
you  are  feverishly  panting  to  enjoy.  Pause,  I 
beseech  you !  Examine  well  the  ground  you  long 
to  tread.  Inquire  seriously  if  you  are  prepared 
to  receive  the  consequences  before  you  set  the 
cause  in  motion.  For  as  surely  as  you  abandon 
virtue,  sooner  or  later,  "  The  Lord  shall  give  tliee 
a  trembling  heart,  and  failing  of  eyes,  and  sorrow 


VICE  AND   ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  201 

of  mind,  and  tliy  life  shall  Jiang  in  doubt  before 
thee,  and  tJiou  shalt  fear  day  and  night.  In  the 
morning  thou  shalt  say,  would  God  it  were  evening  ; 
and  in  the  evening,  would,  God  it  were  morning: 
for  the  fear  of  thine  heart  wherewith  thou  shalt 
fear ;  and  for  the  sight  of  thine  eyes  which  thou 
shalt  see  !" 

But  a  vicious  life  does  not  always  come  to  so 
sudden  and  speedy  a  conclusion.  God  often  suf- 
fers the  sinner  to  fill  up  a  large  measure  of 
sin,  and  to  place  the  hour  of  retribution  far  off. 
When  this  is  the  case,  the  heart  grows  stout  and 
bold.  The  conscience  becomes  blind,  and  dead  to 
feeling.  The  fear  of  God  is  entirely  cast  off.  Re- 
ligion is  treated  as  a  fable.  The  Gospel  is  tram- 
pled under  foot,  and  the  man,  made  brutish,  vile, 
and  abominable,  becomes  "  a  vessel  of  wrath  fitted 
to  destruction  !" 

Now,  I  doubt  not  that  the  reader,  iu  the  pleni- 
tude of  his  self-confidence,  has  thought  himself 
strong  enough  to  enter  on  vicious  pursuits,  with- 
out committing  those  crimes  which  destroy  reputa- 
tion and  lead  to  the  prison.  Well,  he  may  stop 


202  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

short  on  the  brink.  The  thing  is  abstractly  possL 
Die — just  as  a  man  might  gallop  a  furious  horse 
down  a  steep  path  which  terminates  at  a  precipice 
with  a  deep  gulf  beneath,  and  rein  up  his  beast 
at  the  very  brink.  But  the  peril  would  be  so  im- 
minent, none  but  a  madman  would  venture  on  the 
experiment.  So  you  may  give  passion  the  reins 
till  it  carries  you  close  to  crime,  and  then  resume 
the  bridle  and  save  yourself.  The  risk  is  fearful, 
however,  and  no  prudent  youth  will  dare  to 
incur  it. 

There  are  two  facts  which  the  unitiated  young 
sinner  does  not  duly  weigh.  The  first  is,  that 
vice  so  deadens  the  moral  sense,  and  so  blinds 
the  mind,  that  crime  does  not  appear  the  same 
horrible  thing  as  it  did  in  the  happy  days  of  in- 
nocence. The  second  is,  that  the  cost  of  illicit 
pleasures  exceeds  the  resources  of  most  young 
sinners.  Once  taken  in  their  net,  the  foolish 
youth  is  too  weak  to  break  the  entangling  meshes. 
He  must  sin  on :  hence,  he  must  have  money. 
Honorably  he  can  not  obtain  it.  The  card-table, 
the  dice-box,  billiards,  lotteries,  and  other  modes 


VICE  AND  ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  203 

of  gambling,  invite  him  to  replenish,  his  empty 
purse  by  their  aid.  The  poor  dupe  tries,  and 
finds  himself  fleeced  and  reduced  to  extremities. 
What  is  to  be  done?  He  has  gone  too  far  to 
retrace  his  steps.  Yet;  he  must  extricate  him- 
self in  some  way.  The  tempter  whispers  the 
guilty  thought  of  robbing  his  employers.  He 
starts  back  at  the  mere  idea  of  such  an  act. 
But  his  debts  are  pressing  upon  him,  his  habits 
are  expensive,  his  passions  imperious.  Again 
the  tempter  whispers  in  his  heart.  The  idea 
haunts  him  by  day  and  by  night,  till  by  famil- 
iarity its  malign  aspect  loses  its  power  to  terrify. 
The  attempt  is  resolved  on,  but  on  some  specious 
mental  pretense  of  afterward  restoring  what  is 
to  be  taken.  The  opportunity  offers  itself.  The 
deed  is  done,  and  the  young  sinner  trembles 
to  find  himself  a  thief !  Gradually  his  fears 
depart.  Finding  himself  undetected,  he  steals 
again,  till  it  becomes  his  settled  practice  to  em- 
bezzle the  property  of  his  employer,  in  order  to 
pay  the  expenses  of  his  lusts.  Discovery  comes 
at  length,  and  he  who  began  his  career  by  going 


204  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

to  a  theater,  ends  it  in  the  shame  and  ignominy 
of  a  prison.  As  said  a  weeping  and  disconsolate 
mother,  one  day,  to  a  minister,  who,  seeing  her 
distress,  asked,  "What  is  the  matter  with  you, 
madam  ?" 

"  0  my  child !  my  child !  He  is  just  com- 
mitted to  prison !  0,  that  theater !  He  was  a 
virtuous,  kind  youth,  till  the  theater  proved  his 
ruin." 

Nor  was  this  woman's  son  an  exception.  The 
commissioners  of  the  Pentonville  prison,  in  Great 
Britain,  affirm  that  ninety-five  per  cent,  of  the 
criminals  in  British  jails  were  made  so  by  vices, 
whose  cost,  exceeding  their  incomes,  led  to  the 
perpetration  of  crime !  How  dangerous  a  thing 
is  vice  !  Who  is  safe,  when  so  many  have  fallen  ? 
Young  reader,  beware !  Crime  and  imprisonment 
are  the  legitimate  consequences  of  sinful  indul- 
gences :  hence,  if  you  shudder  at  the  idea  of  being 
the  inmate  of  a  jail,  beware  of  the  first  step  in  the 
way  thereto. 

Would  you  know  somewhat  of  the  effects  of 
vice  upon  that  physical  constitution  which  it 


VICE  AND  ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  205 

does  not  immediately  destroy?  Then,  mars  that 
man  who  is  slowly  toiling  along  the  street,  lean- 
ing upon  his  cane.  With  what  difficulty  he  drags 
one  emaciated  leg  after  the  other !  How  thin 
and  angular  are  his  form  and  features  I  Every 
Blow  movement  proclaims  his  excessive  languor. 
There  is  no  health  or  vigor  in  his  motion.  His 
breath  is  short.  A  weak,  hollow  cough  distresses 
him.  His  face  is  pale  as  death.  His  eyes, 
covered  with  a  glassy  film,  have  no  expression. 
His  whole  appearance  is  that  of  abject  misery. 
But  see,  he  has  seated  himself  on  that  door-step 
to  rest !  Let  us  question  him  as  to  his  suf- 
ferings. Hearken,  as  in  a  low,  husky  voice,  he 
details  his  list  of  pains  !  "  My  head/'  he  says, 
"  is  always  dizzy.  I  have  a  constant  headache. 
My  memory  is  gone,  and  I  can  not  confine  my 
mind  to  any  subject  of  thought.  I  find  it 
difficult  to  apprehend  an  idea;  labor  or  study 
are  loathsome  to  me.  My  strength  is  all  gone. 
My  back,  my  sides,  my  limbs  are  in  constant 
pain,  and  my  mind  and  body  are  sinking  into 
utter  ruin  I" 


206  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOK. 

This  is  terrible.  Suppose  we  ask,  "  What 
brought  you  into  this  state,  friend  1" 

Hear  his  reply,  as  he  gazes  upon  us  with  a 
look  of  unutterable  despair :  "  /  brought  it  all 
upon  myself,  BY  INDULGENCE  IN  SOLITAKY  AND 
SOCIAL  VICES  I" 

Sad  Confession  !  Nevertheless,  my  picture  is 
from  life.  Vice  makes  war  upon  every  func- 
tion in  the  human  body.  The  brains,  the  heart, 
the  lungs,  the  liver,  the  spine,  the  limbs,  the 
bones,  the  flesh,  every  part  and  faculty,  are 
overtaxed,  worn,  weakened  by  the  terrific  energy 
of  passion  and  appetite  loosed  from  restraint, 
till,  like  a  dilapidated  mansion,  the  "  earthly 
house  of  this  tabernacle "  falls  into  "  ruinous 
decay." 

I  have  already  described  the  tumult  awakened 
in  the  conscience  of  a  young  profligate  by  his 
first  steps  in  the  wrong  direction;  and,  also,  the 
agony,  despondency,  and  misery  occasioned  by  a 
discovery  of  his  inability  to  break  his  self-im- 
posed bonds.  The  former  state  of  mind  is  usually 
followed  by  one  of  hardened  indifference,  till 


VICE  AND  ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  207 

the  latter  commences.  But  this  settled  gloom, 
bad  as  it  is,  does  not  compare  in  its  terriblenesa 
with  the  more  fearful  sufferings  of  his  heart, 
when,  toward  the  close  of  earthly  existence,  he 
ia  visited  by  the  horrors  of  KEMOKSE,  that  frown- 
ing "rock  that  stops  the  current  of  our  thought 
to  God."  Then, 

"  The  past  lives  o'er  again 
In  its  effects,  and  to  the  guilty  spirit 
The  ever-frowning  present  is  its  image." 

Then  he  understands  the  truth  of  Coleridge'0 
striking  lines : 

"  Just  heaven  instructs  us,  with  an  awful  roice, 
That  conscience  rules  us,  e'en  against  our  choice. 
Our  inward  monitress  to  guide  and  warn, 
If  listened  to ;  but,  if  repelled  with  scorn, 
At  length,  as  dire  remorse,  she  reappears, 
"Works  in  our  guilty  hopes  and  selfish  fears, 
Still  bids  rewember  and  still  cries  too  late, 
And  while  she  scares  us  goads  us  to  our  fate." 

How  much  a  sinner  suffers  from  the  sting  of 
remorse,  no  pen  can  describe,  no  heart  can  fancy. 
"The  agonies  inflicted  by  the  wolf  that  fed  on 


208  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

the  life-stream  of  the  Spartan,  the  poison  injected 
by  the  tooth  of  the  viper,  or  the  three-fanged 
Bting  of  the  scorpion,  are  as  nothing  when  con- 
trasted with  the  stings  of  an  accusing  conscience. 
Most  truly  has  an  American  writer  observed  that 
there  is  no  manliness  or  fortitude  can  bear  up 
under  the  horrors  of  guilt.  The  thing  is  done; 
yet  it  rises,  in  all  its  vivid  coloring,  to  the  soul 
that  has  incurred  it,  overwhelming  it  with  re- 
morse and  despair.  The  reproaches  of  conscience, 
once  thoroughly  aroused,  can  neither  be  silenced 
nor  borne.  No  human  spirit  can  sustain  its  en- 
ergies under  such  a  burden,  when  it  really  comes." 
Hence,  notorious  criminals,  who  have  denied  their 
crimes  while  stretched  on  racks  and  wheels,  have 
subsequently  surrendered  themselves  to  justice 
through  the  fiercer  torments  of  remorse.  To  con- 
firm these  remarks,  I  submit  two  or  three  con- 
fessions which  fell  from  the  lips  of  some  wretched 
victims  of  remorse. 

"I  would  die  —  I  dare  not  die!  I  would 
live  —  I  dare  not  live!  0,  what  a  burden  is 
the  hand  of  an  angry  God  !"  exclaimed  the 


VICE  AND  ITS   CONSEQUENCES.  209 

terrified  Viscount  Kenmuir,  in  his  dying  mo- 
ments. 

"Is  your  mind  at  ease?"  asked  Dr.  Turton, 
of  the  departing  Oliver  Goldsmith,  as  he  lay 
tossed  with  an  anguish  deeper  than  what  his  dis- 
ease occasioned. 

"  No,  IT  is  NOT  I"  was  the  sad  reply  of  the 
once  gay  and  jolly  author  of  "The  Deserted  Vil- 
lage," as,  deserted  of  God,  he  fought  his  last  bat- 
tle with  Death. 

"I  feel  the  weight  of  God's  wrath  burning 
like  the  pains  of  hell  within  me,  and  pressing 
on  my  conscience  with  an  anguish  which  can 
not  be  described  I"  cried  the  apostate  Francis 
Spira,  when  writhing  in  the  agonies  of  death. 

"My  dear,  you  appear  as  if  your  heart  were 
breaking,"  said  a  weeping  lady  to  her  dying 
infidel  husband,  whose  distress  appeared  to  be 
unendurable. 

"  Let  it  break !  Let  it  break !  but  it  is  hard 
work  to  die!"  he  replied.  Then  directing  a 
glance  toward  heaven,  he  cried,  "Lord,  have 

mercy !    Jesus  save !"  and  died. 
14 


THE  YOUNG  MAN  8   COUNSELOR. 

Now,  all  this  is  most  shocking  to  contemplate. 
What,  then,  must  its  endurance  be  ?  And  it  ia 
nothing  more  than  the  harvest  gathered  from 
a  vicious  life.  Every  illicit  enjoyment  is  a  seed 
of  such  torment  as  this.  The  guilty  revel  over 
the  wine-cup,  the  scoff  at  religion,  the  sneer  at 
piety,  the  hilarity  of  the  dance,  the  embrace 
of  lust,  the  violated  Sabbath,  the  profane  ex- 
pression, are  each  and  all  the  substances  of  those 
images  which  rise  up,  grim  and  ghostly,  to  tor- 
ment the  remorseful  sinner.  If,  then,  my  dear 
young  friend,  you  tremble  at  the  consequences, 
shun  the  cause — sow  not  the  seed — touch  not 
the  sin  —  stray  not  from  the  side  of  virtue!  But 
if  you  will,  despite  of  all  warning  voices,  seek  to 
know  the  mysteries  of  vice,  then  I  say  to  you,  in 
the  language  of  inspiration, 

"Rejoice,  0  young  man,  in  thy  youth;  and  let 
thy  heart  cheer  thee  in  the  days  of  thy  youth,  and 
walk  in  the  ways  of  thine  heart,  and  in  the  sight 
of  thine  eyes;  BUT  KNOW  THOU  THAT  FOR  ALL 

THESE   THINGS  GrOD   WILL  BRING   THEE  INTO   JUDG- 
MENT.   THEREFORE,  PUT  AWAY  EVIL  FROM  THY 


VICE  AND  ITS   CONSEQUENCES.  211 

FLESH !"  Seek  the  aids  of  pure  religion.  Cleave 
to  purity,  quiet,  and  virtue,  and  thus  you  "shall 
dwell  safety,  and  sJiall  be  quiet  from  fear  of  evil " 


212  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

VICE  AND   ITS   SEDUCERS 

"  Come  home !  there  is  a  sorrowing  breath 

In  music  since  ye  went ; 
And  the  early  flower-scents  wander  by, 

With  mournful  memories  blent. 
The  tones  in  every  household  voice 

Are  grown  more  sad  and  deep, 
And  the  sweet  word,  brother,  wakes  a  wish 

To  turn  aside,  and  weep." 

IHESE  exquisite  lines,  by  MRS.  HEMANS,  give 
a  beautiful  expression  to  those  tender  affec- 
tions which  plead  with  every  young  man  to  main- 
tain his  affinity  with  home  and  its  virtuous  pleas- 
ures. They  show  the  strength  of  those  restraining 
influences  with  which  God  would  fain  hold  the 
young  sinner  back  from  vice.  All  its  love  and  all 
its  friendship  plead  with  him,  weep  over  him,  wait 
for  him.  Though  by  his  profligacy  he  has  dug  a 
gulf  between  it  and  himself,  yet  it  maintains  an 


VICE  AND   ITS   SEDUCERS.  213 

unalienated  regard,  and  with  open  arms  and  unut- 
terable emotion,  cries,  "  Come  home !"  Holy  love ! 
Affection  almost  divine  !  How  strange,  that  the 
voices  of  lust  and  infamy  should  ever  exert  a  more 
controlling  power  over  a  young  man's  spirit  than 
these  loving  voices  of  home  ! 

Yet  so  it  is  in  every  instance  of  youthful  delin- 
quency. The  false-hearted  victims  of  foul  iniq- 
uity sway  his  soul,  and  render  him  deaf  to  the 
pleadings  of  his  best  and  purest  friends.  His 
foolish  heart  yields  itself  up  to  vicious  seducers, 
whose  only  aim  is  his  destruction.  A  fashionable 
popinjay,  a  foppish  blackguard,  a  gambler,  a  filthy 
harlot,  is  permitted  to  silence  and  push  aside  a 
venerable  father,  a  fond  mother,  a  pure  sister, 
and  a  noble  brother.  This  fact  alone  exhibits  the 
fratefulness  of  vice,  and  should  cause  a  young  man 
to  seriously  pause  before  placing  a  foot  on  the  ac- 
cursed threshold  of  its  infamous  temple.  To  de- 
scribe the  seducers  to  vice,  and  to  caution  my 
reader  against  them,  are  my  aims  in  this  chapter. 

Bad  looks  and  impure  pictures  are  among  the 
lirst  corrupting  instrumentalities  which  deL:«e  a 


214  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

young  mind.  With  the  former  may  be  ranked  the 
innumerable  novels  which  are  perpetually  issuing 
from  unprincipled  presses;  all  kinds  of  amorou? 
poetry;  and  a  class  of  filthy  books,  pretending  to 
be  medical,  physiological,  and  instructive,  while 
in  reality  they  are  only  disgusting  stimulants  to 
unholy,  prurient  desires.  Among  the  latter  are 
those  engravings  and  paintings,  whether  in  books 
or  papers,  or  on  the  covers  of  snuff-boxes,  etc., 
which,  from  their  immodesty,  are  calculated  to 
defile  the  mind  and  call  the  latent  depravity  of 
the  heart  into  action.  These  vile  productions  of 
misdirected  art  the  young  man  who  values  his 
moral  character  must  refuse  to  see.  If  they  are 
brought  under  his  notice,  he  must  resolutely  turn 
away  his  eyes  from  gazing  upon  them ;  for  as  sure 
as  he  takes  pleasure  in  them,  he  will  be  undone. 
So  of  novels;  they  must  be  rejected  with  invin- 
cible determination. 

But  are  all  novels  to  be  eschewed?  Are  not 
some  of  them  pure,  both  in  style  and  tendency? 
To  this  last  question  I  reply,  it  is  true  that  some 
novels  are  better  than  others;  in  themselves  they 


VICE  AND  ITS   SEDUCERS.  215 

may  be  unspotted.  Yet  in  one  point  they  do 
harm;  they  create  a  taste  for  fictitious  reading. 
This  taste  soon  acquires  the  intensity  of  a  passion. 
The  mind  acquires  a  craving  for  excitement,  and 
thus  the  youth,  who  begins  by  reveling  among  the 
splendid  paintings  of  SIR  WALTER  SCOTT'S  pen, 
or  by  subjecting  himself  to  the  quiet  enchant- 
ment of  FREDERIKA  BREMER'S  spirit,  will  speedily 
seek  the  works  of  more  impassioned  authors.  He 
will  hasten  from  DICKENS  to  JAMES,  from  James 
to  BULWER,  from  Bulwer  to  AINSWORTH,  from 
him  to  EUGENE  SUE,  and  finally  he  will  steep  his 
polluted  mind  in  the  abominations  of  that  Moloch 
among  novelists,  PAUL  DE  KOCK.  By  this  time 
he  is  ready  for  destruction.  By  venturing  in  the 
pleasant  ripple,  he  has  been  tempted  to  sport  in 
the  heaving  breakers,  till,  caught  by  the  resistless 
under-current,  he  is  borne  out  to  sea,  and  meets  a 
premature  death.  How  much  better  to  have 
avoided  the  ripple !  Young  man,  beware  of  read- 
ing your  first  novel ! 

But,  alas !    this   counsel  is   probably  too  late ! 
You  are  already  under  the  spell  of  the  charmer, 


216  THE   YOUNG  MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

and  can  hardly  tolerate  these  censures!  Not  that 
you  have  no  doubts  concerning  the  effects  of  such 
reading;  but  you  love  it,  passionately  love  it !  You 
demand  proof  of  the  evil  charged  on  these  works. 

Such  proof  is  to  be  found  in  the  experience  of 
all  novel-readers.  Every  such  person  knows  that 
they  corrupt  the  heart,  through  the  imagination. 
They  portray  persons,  characters,  and  scenes,  to 
the  imagination,  which,  being  viewed  there,  inev- 
itably bestir  the  lowest  propensions  of  poor,  fallen 
nature.  The  thief,  the  blasphemer,  the  skeptic, 
the  seducer,  the  gambler — ideal  wretches,  whose 
actual  presence  in  our  home  would  be  deemed  a 
disgrace  —  are  freely  introduced  into  the  "cham- 
bers of  imagery/'  and  permitted  to  utter  all  their 
filthy  conversation,  and  to  do  their  disgusting 
deeds,  directly  before  the  mind.  Can  this  be 
done  with  impunity?  Nay!  As  well  might  one 
hope  to  handle  melted  pitch  and  avoid  defilement; 
for  the  imagination  can  not  be  polluted  by  vile 
images,  without  causing  the  heart  to  give  forth 
depraved  eruptions. 

These  enmtions   may  not   take   place   at  once. 


YICE  AND   ITS   SEDUCERS.  217 

They  may  delay  to  show  themselves  for  a  time; 
but  the  igniting  spark  is  there,  and  only  awaits 
a  proper  combination  of  circumstances  to  Dreak 
forth.  <•  Behold  a  fire  smoldering  and  slumbering 
amid  a  heap  of  cinders.  For  a  time  it  makes  no 
progress ;  it  dwells  in  darkness.  One  would  sup- 
pose it  had  made  up  its  mind  for  extinction.  But 
judge  not  too  hastily.  The  mass  around  has  been 
penetrated  by  the  heat,  and  prepared  for  its  func- 
tion. The  fire  has  been  blending  itself  with  the 
cinders,  and  is  ready  to  break  out.  Stir  them 
once  more.  Clear  them  for  the  draught.  Touch 
them  once  more,  and  the  whole  will  break  out 
into  a  conflagration."  Thus  it  is  with  pernicious 
images  in  the  mind.  Their  influence  permeates 
the  spirit.  They  fire  the  heart;  they  prepare  the 
senses.  Then  comes  the  guilty  opportunity,  and 
the  breath  of  the  tempter.  The  spark  ignites. 
The  soul  is  in  a  blaze  of  passion.  The  sin  is 
committed.  The  deed  is  done;  and  guilt  binds 
its  fearful  burden  upon  the  conscience,  with  chains 
of  triple  steel. 

DANTE  has  delicately  described   the  sad  result 


218  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

of  inflaming  the  heart  through  such  vile  books. 
In  his  imaginary  journey  through  perdition,  he 
describes  his  interview  with  PAOLO  and  FRAN- 
CESCA,  an  Italian  lord  and  lady,  who  were  put  to 
death  for  the  crime  of  adultery.  After  question- 
ing the  guilty  lady  concerning  her  sin,  he  gives 
the  following  lines  as  her  answer  to  his  inquiries. 
She  says : 

"  One  day 

For  our  delight  we  read  of  Lancelot,0 
How  him  love  thralled.    Alone  we  were,  and  no 
Suspicion  near  us.    Ofttimes  by  that  reading 
Our  eyes  were  drawn  together,  and  the  hue 
Fled  from  our  altered  cheek.    But  at  one  point 

Alone  we  fell. 

•  •  •  • 

The  book  and  writer  loth. 

Were  GUILT'S  purveyors.    In  its  leaves  that  day 
We  read  no  more." 

The  poet  has  shown,  in  this  exceedingly-del- 
icate passage,  how  a  bad  book  became  the  instru- 
ment of  an  evil  which  cost  the  virtue  and  lives 

0  The  hero  of  the  old  romance.    He  was  one  of  the  knights  of 
the  famous  Round  Table. 


VICE   AND   ITS   SEDUCERS.  219 

of  the  parties.  With  these  views  before  him, 
will  any  young  man,  who  sets  the  least  value  upon 
his  innocency,  dare  to  run  the  risk  of  losing  it  for 
the  sake  of  the  dangerous  pleasure  afforded  by  a 
corrupting  book  ?  If  my  young  reader  has  already 
fallen  into  the  snare,  let  him  glance  a  moment  at 
his  peril,  and  escape  while  he  may.  For  though, 
by  some  extraordinary  measure  of  Providence,  he 
may  escape  from  utter  ruin,  yet  he  can  not,  by  any 
possibility,  avoid  a  high  degree  of  hurt  to  his  in- 
tellectual and  moral  nature.  If,  as  TENNYSON  has 
written,  every  man  may  truly  say, 

"  I  am  a  part  of  all  that  I  have  met ;" 

and  if,  as  a  writer  in  the  Edinburgh  Review  beau- 
tifully remarks,  "the  stream  will  make  mention 
of  its  bed — the  river  will  report  of  those  shores 
which,  sweeping  through  many  regions  and  climes, 
it  has  washed  —  then  those  currents  of  thought 
whose  sources  lie  afar  off"  must  be  affected  by  the 
quality  of  the  books  through  which  it  has  run. 
The  character  must  be  more  or  less  modified  by 
the  intellectual  companionships  of  its  early  years. 


220          THE  YOUNO  MAN'S  COUNSELOR 

Reject,  therefore,  with  virtuous  horror,  every  book, 
however  fascinating  or  eloquent  it  may  be,  which 
tends  to  stimulate  any  evil  propensity  of  your  na- 
ture. Turn  from  it  with  disgust.  It  is  a  seducer 
of  virtue,  a  pander  to  vice — an  evil  to  be  abomin- 
ated, shunned,  and  dreaded. 

Next  to  bad  books  comes  the  influence  of  aban- 
doned companions.  To  seduce  the  innocent  into 
a  depth  of  iniquity  as  deep  as  that  into  which 
themselves  have  fallen,  is  the  delight  of  bad  men. 
Some  do  this  for  what  they  may  gain  of  their 
unhappy  dupe;  others,  for  the  fiendish  pleasure 
it  affords  a  depraved  heart  to  see  itself  equaled 
in  wickedness  by  kindred  minds.  Mind,  like  air, 
seeks  its  equilibrium.  Hence,  a  virtuous  youth 
may  settle  it  as  an  indisputable  fact,  that  his 
guilty  companions  will  either  drag  him  down  to 
their  level,  or  he  must  raise  them  up  to  his.  Oth- 
erwise, they  must  cease  intercourse. 

It  is  rare  that  a  novice  in  iniquity  falls  at  once 
into  the  hands  of  finished  seducers.  Novices  are 
usually  reached  at  first  by  young  men  of  their  own 
age,  who  have  recently  taken  their  first  degrees  .in 


VICE  AND  ITS   SEDUCERS.  221 

glaring  sin.  The  merry,  roistering  jollity  of  such 
sinners,  their  gayety  of  spirit,  their  apparent  hap- 
piness, the  glowing  descriptions  they  give  of  their 
festivities,  the  sly  hints  they  throw  out  at  the 
greenness  of  the  uninitiated,  the  half-playful,  half- 
earnest  banterings  with  which  they  greet  their 
bashful  excuses  for  not  joining  in  their  vices, 
are  the  first  seductive  influences  which  usually 
reach  young  men  from  the  wicked.  By  these 
means  they  learn  to  love  their  society;  they  lose 
their  relish  for  the  purity  and  quiet  of  home ;  they 
feel  mortified  at  their  ignorance  of  iniquitous  prac- 
tices; till,  surrendering  themselves  to  the  guid- 
ance of  these  children  of  sin,  they  take  costly  les- 
sons for  themselves  in  Sabbath-breaking,  in  drink- 
ing revels,  and  in  forbidden  visits  to  that  pande- 
monium of  all  evil,  the  theater. 

Here,  then,  young  man,  is  the  turning-point  of 
your  destiny.  When  your  heart  first  feels  en- 
chanted by  young  men  whom  you  know  to  be  the 
occasions  of  grief  to  their  friends  and  of  suspicion 
to  their  employers,  your  danger  is  imminent  and 
extreme.  The  fact  that  you  fail  to  discern  tho 


222  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

full  enormity  of  their  practices,  is  the  sign  that 
you  are  marked  for  destruction.  There  is  a  cer- 
tain bird  which  prepares  its  prey  for  its  talons,  bv 
fluttering  over  its  head  and  blinding  its  eyes  with 
the  sand  with  which  it  previously  covers  itself. 
The  brilliant  devices  of  gay  sinners,  like  sand, 
blinding  your  eyes  to  the  consequences  of  sin, 
fit  you  to  be  their  prey.  Now,  therefore,  or  never, 
is  your  opportunity  to  escape.  Break  away  at 
once  from  their  snares,  or  you  are  undone.  Once 
abandoned  to  their  influence,  you  are  lost.  They 
will  lead  you  from  sin  to  sin,  till  you  are  as  highly 
accomplished  in  the  arts  of  vice  as  the  worst. 
Remember  that  "  evil  companions  will  blight  in 
you  the  delicate  flower  of  innocence,  which  dif- 
fuses itself  around  you  as  a  sweet  perfume." 

Among  the  more  finished  seducers  to  vice  are 
the  gambler,  the  libertine,  and  the  skeptic.  These 
are  walking  pestilences,  less  merciful  to  their  vic- 
tims than  the  howling  wolf  to  the  bleating  lamb. 
Woe  unto  the  young  man  who  falls  into  their 
power ! 

The  gambler  is  usually  a  drunkard.     He  needs 


VICE  AND   ITS   SEDUCERS.  223 

the  stimulus  of  spirits  to  sustain  the  excitements 
of  the  card-table.  He  has  no  principles  of  honor, 
or  integrity;  for  cheating  is  his  trade.  He  has 
no  pity.  His  heart  is  as  adamant.  He  will  fleece 
his  victim  of  the  last  penny  he  has  in  the  world, 
though  he  knows  the  poor  dupe  has  a  starving 
family  at  home,  and  will  either  go  forth  from 
his  den  to  become  a  robber,  or  to  rush  unbidden 
into  the  presence  of  his  God.  He  has  the  body 
of  a  man,  but  the  spirit  of  a  devil.  It  is  his 
meat  and  his  drink  to  destroy  and  ruin  his  fellow- 
creatures.  Yet  this  is  the  man  who  will  greet 
a  young  man  with  smiles  and  with  flattery;  who 
will  praise  his  skill,  laud  his  courage,  and  pre- 
dict his  success  at  the  gaming-table.  This  is 
the  man  to  whom  silly  youths  surrender  them- 
selves. Will  you,  my  reader,  study  this  etching 
well?  Imprint  it  on  your  memory,  and,  if  ever 
you  are  unhappily  lured  into  his  den,  call  it  up 
in  its  freshness,  and  let  it  hold  you  back  from 
becoming  either  his  victim  or  his  representative. 

The  libertine  is  a  beast  in  human  form.     He  is  a 
man  enslaved  in  chains,  sell-wrought  and  riveted 


224  THE   YOUNG   MAN' 8   COUNSELOR. 

by  his  own  hands.  The  dignity  of  his  manhood 
is  obliterated.  Every  noble  human  quality,  every 
elevating  attribute  of  character,  and  every  God- 
like trait,  are  defaced,  blurred,  and  buried  under- 
neath the  teeming  vices  of  sensuality.  His  very 
aspect  proclaims  his  deep  degradation.  In  place 
of  the  calm  intellectuality  which  robes  a  virtuous 
countenance  with  grace  and  splendor,  is  the  down- 
cast, expressionless  look  of  the  mere  animal.  His 
neglected  and  stunted  soul,  long  enchained,  like 
a  galley-slave,  by  the  tyrannical  senses  and  pas- 
sions, seems  to  have  lost  its  high  powers  of  rea- 
soning and  willing,  and  to  tamely  endure  a  bond- 
age it  can  not  escape.  A  corrupt  and  loath- 
some wretch,  the  libertine  sins  on,  till  his  filthy 
body  tumbles,  a  heap  of  ruins,  into  an  oblivious 
grave. 

Do  such  disgusting  creatures  as  these  ever  be- 
come the  seducers  of  virtuous  young  manhood  ? 
They  do.  For  even  they  can  lure  with  the  tongue. 
They  can  draw  inflaming  pictures  to  the  fancy; 
they  can  sneer  at  the  ignorance  of  innocence; 
they  can  persuade  the  unwary  youth  to  venture 


VICE  AND  ITS   SEDUCERS.  225 

across  the  threshold  of  infamy.  They  find  infa 
mous  pleasure  in  the  overthrow  of  virtuous  resolve. 
Woe,  therefore,  to  him  who  dares  to  venture  into 
their  society!  They  begin  their  efforts  by  hints, 
and,  as  TUPPER  properly  remarks, 

"  Hints  shrewdly  strewn  mightily  disturb  the  spirit, 
The  sly  suggestion  toucheth  nerves,  and  nerves  contract  the 

fronds, 
And  the  sensitive  mimosa  of  affection  trembleth  to  its  root." 

Libertines  understand  this  principle.  Hence, 
they  are  careful  to  captivate  by  sly  inuendoes,  and 
not  to  disgust  by  gross  description.  When  their 
victim  is  sufficiently  blunted  in  his  moral  sensi- 
bility, and  excited  in  his  passion,  they  lead  him, 
half-reluctant,  half-willing,  into  the  path  of  the 
"strange  woman."  The  word  of  God  graphically 
describes  the  unhappy  simpleton  who  suffers  him- 
self to  be  thus  beguiled : 

"I  beheld,"  says  the  wise  man,  "among  the 
simple  ones;  I  discerned  among  the  youths  A 

YOUNG    MAN    VOID     OF     UNDERSTANDING,     passing 

through  the  street  near  her  corner;  and  he  went 
15 


226  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

the   way  to   her  house,  in   the    twilight,    in   the 
evening,  in  the  black  and  dark  night." 

How  striking  is  this  picture!  How  lifelike 
its  penciling  of  the  young  man  who  is  laboring 
to  break  down  the  last  bulwark  of  virtue  in  his 
soul !  His  already-polluted  mind,  brought  into 
subjection  by  the  baser  passions,  impels  him,  when 
the  sun  is  down,  to  venture  within  the  precincts 
of  iniquity.  He  walks  around  the  place  of  vile 
resort,  as  if  inviting  the  temptation  of  the 
wretched  creatures  who  abide  there.  Later  in 
the  evening,  he  repeats  his  walk;  just  as  the 
moth  returns  to  the  flame  of  the  lamp.  At  length 
the  hour  most  fitted  for  crime  arrives  —  "the 
black  and  dark  night."  And  continues  Solomon, 
"  Behold  there  met  him  a  woman  with  the  attire 
of  an  harlot,  and  subtile  of  heart.  So  she  caught 
him  and  kissed  him,  and  with  an  impudent  face 
said  unto  him :  '  Come,  let  us  take  our  fill  of 
love  until  the  morning.'  With  her  much  fair 
speech  she  caused  him  to  yield,  with  the  flatter- 
ing of  her  lips  she  forced  him.  HE  GOETH  AFTER 

UER  STRAIGHTWAY,  AS  AN  OX  GOETH  TO  THE 


VICE  AND  ITS   SEDUCERS.  227 

SLAUGHTER,  OR  AS  A  FOOL  TO  THE  CORRECTION  OP 
THE  STOCKS  !" 

Such  is  the  process  of  ruin.  Let  the  reader 
study  this  description  till  he  feels  an  irrepressible 
loathing  toward  that  impudent  seducer  of  virtue, 
and  a  terrible  dread  of  standing  in  the  place  of 
that  simple  youth.  For,  awful  indeed  is  the  fate 
that  awaits  him.  His  sin  will  cause  "a  dart  to 
strike  through  his  liver."  The  house  he  enters  is 

"  THE  WAY  TO  HELL,  GOING  DOWN  TO  THE  CHAM- 
BERS OP  DEATH."  The  feet  of  the  woman  he 
follows  "GO  DOWN  TO  DEATH;  HER  STEPS  TAKE 
HOLD  ON  HELL."  Her  power  is  so  resistless,  that 
"  none  that  go  to  her  return  again :  neither  take 
they  hold  of  the  paths  of  life."  She  binds  them 
fast  in  her  bonds,  till  they  "mourn  at  the  last 

when  THEIR  FLESH  AND  THEIR  BODY  ARE  CON- 
SUMED !" 

Are  not  these  fearful  descriptions  sufficient  to 
call  a  vow  from  your  heart,  young  man,  never  to 
fall  into  such  hands  ?  or  to  induce  you,  if  you  are 
deceived  by  some  diabolical  wretch,  as  was  a  young 
man  I  will  call  PETER  PERCY,  and  led  to  the  snare 


THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 


to  burst  it  and  depart  ?  Peter  was  conducted  bj 
a  designing  companion  into  a  house  of  ill  repute, 
whose  character  he  did  not  even  suspect?  Hia 
pretended  friend  led  him  into  a  chamber,  intro- 
duced him  to  a  poor,  fallen  creature,  and,  turning 
away,  locked  the  door,  and  left  him,  as  he  thought, 
a  sure  prey  to  the  charmer.  But  virtue  was  strong 
in  Peter's  soul.  He  saw  his  danger  at  a  glance. 
To  parley  was  to  fall.  Running  to  the  window, 
he  beheld  a  distance  of  several  feet  between  him 
and  the  ground.  To  leap  might  make  him  lame 
for  life.  To  refrain  might  spot  his  soul  forever. 
What  is  a  physical  hurt,  compared  with  moral  pol- 
lution? Nothing.  So  thought  Peter;  and  he 
leaped  from  the  window  to  the*  ground  unhurt. 
A  noble  and  manly  act.  It  probably  saved  Peter's 
body  from  destruction  and  his  soul  from  hell. 
Young  man,  "  go  thou  and  do  likewise !"  Ever 
be  ready  to  say  to  libertine  or  harlot,  "  How  can 
I  do  this  great  wickedness,  and  sin  against  God  ?" 
Thus  shall  you  "find  life,  and  obtain  favor  of  the 
Lord." 
The  skeptic,  the  third  I  named  among  the 


VICE  AND   ITS   SEDUCERS.  229 

finished  seducers  to  vice,  is  usually  a  greedy  de« 
vourer  of  souls.  Miserable,  unprincipled,  given 
over  to  work  iniquity,  he  has  an  appetite  for  ruined 
souls  as  insatiable  as  the  horse-leech  or  the  grave. 
Though  every  sentence  he  utters  against  God  and 
revelation  stings  his  own  soul  like  an  adder,  yet 
he  pours  forth  his  proud  and  haughty  blasphemies 
in  floods  of  irony,  sarcasm,  and  jests  at  sacred 
things.  Furious  in  his  temper,  he  brooks  no 
denial  of  his  monstrous  doctrines.  A  mere  sci- 
olist in  reality,  he  makes  a  great  show  of  knowl- 
edge by  quoting  a  few  passages  he  has  picked  up 
from  infidel  books,  and  thus  often  confounds  the 
modest  youth  whom  he  assaults.  Merciless  as 
a  catamount,  he*would  corrupt  the  purest  human 
mind  on  earth,  though  he  knew  it  would  thereby 
be  brought  down  to  the  misery  of  the  hell  whose 
unceasing  fires  burn  within  his  own  bosom.  His 
grand  instrument  of  seduction  is  contempt.  He 
sneers  at  truth,  and  then  hypocritically  asks  his 
intended  victim  if  a  man  of  sense  and  mind 
can  believe  such  nonsense.  Thus,  by  degrees, 
he  induces  young  men  to  grow  proud  of  their 


230          THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

imaginary  superiority,  and  to  feel  ashamed  of 
revealed  truth.  This  accomplished,  the  remainder 
of  his  satanic  task  is  easy;  for  as  waters  flow 
readily  when  the  obstructing  dam  is  demolished, 
so,  when  belief  in  God  and  revelation  is  shaken, 
sin  flows  unrestrained  from  the  depraved  heart. 

Beware,  then,  of  the  skeptic !  Keep  away  from 
his  person.  Would  you  inhale  the  breath  of  the 
pestilence  ?  Would  you  rush  into  the  folds  of  a 
serpent  ?  Would  you  leap  into  the  enraged  ocean  ? 
Yet  either  of  these  things  is  as  proper  to  be  done 
as  to  place  yourself  under  the  influence  of  a 
skeptic!  Shun  his  society,  therefore.  Be  satis- 
fied to  know  that  the  best  thing  infidelity  ever 
did,  even  for  its  princes  and  champions,  was  to 
corrupt  their  lives,  and  fill  them  with  unutterable 
remorse.  "  LORD  HERBERT,  HOBBES,  LORD 
SHAFTSBURY,  WOOLSTON,  TINDAL,  CHUBB,  and 
LORD  BOLINGBROKE,  were  all  guilty  of  the  vile 
hypocrisy  of  lying."  ROCHESTER  and  WHARTON 
were  profligates.  Woolston  was  a  gross  blas- 
phemer BLOUNT,  a  suicide.  VOLTAIRE  was 
noted  for  "impudent  audacity,  filthy  sensuality, 


VICE  AND   ITS   SEDUCERS.  231 

persecuting  envy,  base  adulation,"  tyrrany  and 
cruelty.  ROUSSEAU  was  a  thief,  a  liar,  and  a 
profligate.*  Need  I  say  more?  With  such  his- 
torical examples  before  his  eyes,  what  young  man 
will  dare  to  suffer  a  skeptic  to  throw  his  seductive 
influences  around  him  ?  Surely  my  reader  will  flee 
from  him  as  for  his  life 

Evil  companions  are,  therefore,  to  be  totally 
avoided.  Safety  is  to  be  purchased  only  at  the 
price  of  entire  abstinence  from  their  society;  for, 
as  he  who  tastes  his  first  glass  of  intoxicating 
drink  has  no  security  against  becoming  a  drunkard, 
so  he  who  finds  a  little  delight  in  the  society  of 
partially-corrupted  persons,  has  abandoned  the 
ground  of  absolute  safety.  He  is  within  a 
charmed  circle.  The  incantation  has  begun.  The 
demon  of  the  circle  is  nigh.  Soon  will  he  pre- 
sent the  bond  by  which  the  young  dupe  will  sign 
away  his  virtue,  his  hopes,  his  soul.  Beware,  0 
beware,  then,  of  every  one  of  the  seducers  to 
rice!  Reject  the  bad  book;  turn  away  from  the 

°See  Home's  Introduction,  chap,  i,  pp.  24-26. 


232  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

vile  picture;  refuse  your  company  to  the  wicked  .' 
Seek  God  and  his  children;  so  shall  you  happily 
escape  the  dangers  of  life,  and  win  a  crown  of 
eternal  glory. 


COURTSHIP  AND   MARRIAGE.  233 


CHAPTER  XII. 

COURTSHIP  AND   MARRIAGE, 

(EHOLD  yonder  mass  of  barren  rock,  without 
a  tuft  of  moss  or  lichen  upon  its  surface ! 
The  wind  rises,  and  a  cloud  of  dust  fills  the  air. 
A  portion  of  this  dust  lodges  in  the  numerous 
interstices  of  the  rock,  and  erelong  a  tiny  tuft 
of  moss,  borne  on  the  wings  of  the  breeze,  or 
dropping  from  a  neighboring  tree,  falls  into  a 
crevice  filled  with  dust,  vegetates,  spreads,  and 
covers  the  rock  with  a  carpet  of  green.  The 
moss  decays  and  grows  again.  The  stratum  in- 
creases. Other  plants  spring  up  from  seeds 
wafted  to  the  spot  by  the  ever-changing  wind. 
These  grow  and  rot,  thereby  increasing  the  depth 
of  the  soil,  till,  in  the  progress^  of  time,  it  ac- 
quires depth  sufficient  to  nourish  the  noblest 
forest  trees.  These  humble  mosses  also  power- 


234  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

fully  attract  moisture  from  the  clouds,  which, 
trickling  through  every  crevice,  finds  its  way  to 
the  lowest  nook,  accumulates,  becomes  first  a  riv- 
ulet, then  a  brook,  a  cascade,  a  river.  This, 
flowing  into  the  ocean,  forms  clouds  by  evap- 
oration, and  once  more  falls  to  fertilize  the 
earth. 

Thus  does  an  observant  philosopher  describe  the 
great  results  which  nature  brings  forth  from  small 
beginnings.  Yet,  how  many  never  dream  of  con- 
sequences from  a  cloud  of  dust !  It  is  too  small 
a  matter  to  awaken  a  thought.  So  of  a  myriad 
more  of  nature's  labors.  They  are  the  workings 
of  an  invisible,  omnipotent  God — the  necessary 
processes  of  the  world's  existence.  But  men  pass 
blindly  on,  and  see  nothing  in  them  sufficiently 
significant  to  arrest  their  attention. 

There  is  a  corresponding  blindness  concerning 
many  of  those  human  actions  whose  consequences 
reach  far  into  the  future  of  man's  existence. 
The  commencement  of  that  affectionate  inter- 
course between  a  youth  and  a  maiden,  called 
courtship,  is  an  example.  How  little  is  thought 


COURTSHIP  AND   MARRIAGE.  235 

of  the  first  buddings  of  love  between  two  young 
persons !  By  the  parents  it  is  often  deemed  a 
fitting  subject  for  joke  and  laughter.  The  parties 
themselves,  conscious  chiefly  of  a  mutual  attrac- 
tion, abandon  themselves  to  romantic  visions  of 
future  bliss,  and  to  efforts  to  please  each  other. 
Little  do  they  dream  that  from  their  gay  and 
lightsome  intercourse  is  to  proceed  a  stream  of 
exquisite  delight,  or  of  burning  poison,  running 
parallel,  perhaps,  with  their  immortal  existence; 
yet  so  it  is.  A  life  of  bitter,  bitter  anguish,  or 
of  as  much  happiness  as  is  permitted  to  mortals 
on  earth,  lies  inclosed  in  the  but  too  lightly-es- 
teemed state  of  courtship.  Next  to  marriage,  it  is 
the  gravest  and  most  solemn  affair  relating  to  life 
this  side  the  grave. 

•  Erroneous  views  of  courtship  have  their  founda- 
tion in  low  and  ignoble  ideas  concerning  marriage 
itself.  How  is  marriage  regarded  by  most  young 
men  ?  Alas !  is  it  not  viewed  chiefly  as  a  legal 
method  of  gratifying  the  sexual  appetite? — as  "a 
means  of  sensual  gratification" — for  the  mere 
physical  purposes  of  the  continuance  of  the 


THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 


race?"*  With  these  views  of  marriage,  is  it  at 
all  surprising  that  the  courtship  which  stands  in 
so  intimate  a  relation  to  it  is  carried  on  in  a  light, 
unworthy,  and  even  impure  spirit?  Is  it  wonder- 
ful that  the  parties  frequently  violate  the  laws  of 
modesty,  and  become  guilty  before  God  and  man? 
Is  it  strange  that  moral  and  intellectual  affinities 
and  repugnances  are  overlooked  and  disregarded  ? 
Nay,  the  wonder  is  that  these  things  are  not  more 
common. 

Now,  young  man,  I  wish  you,  as  a  moral  and 
intellectual  creature,  to  open  your  eyes,  and  behold 
with  grateful  wonder  the  noble  designs  of  God, 
which  lie  hidden  beneath  this  question  of  mar- 
riage. True,  it  has  a  physical  purpose  to  accom- 
plish. By  it  our  species  are  to  be  continued  in 
the  healthiest  and  purest  manner.  But  running 
parallel  with  this  is  the  higher,  nobler,  loftier 
design  of  developing  the  purest  affections  of  the 
Heart,  and  the  loveliest  excellences  of  our  nature. 


0  See  a  recent  work  by  Dr.  Ware,  called  "  Hints  to  Young  Mem 
on  the  True  Relation  of  the  Sexes." 


COURTSHIP  AND  MARRIAGE.  237 

As  DR.  WARE  has  well  said,  "The  permanent 
union  of  one  man  with  one  woman  establishes  a 
relation  of  affections  and  interests  which  can  in 
no  other  way  be  made  to  exist  between  two  human 
beings.  Without  it  no  individual  can  be  con- 
sidered as  having  answered  the  whole  purpose  of 
his  existence  —  of  having  arrived  at  the  full 
development  of  which  he  is  capable.  He  is  in- 
complete and  imperfect.  He  'has  tendencies,  ca- 
pacities, powers  for  good,  which  have  never  been 
called  out,  which  he  may  not  know  even  to  exist. 
Domestic  life,  and  the  domestic  relations,  are  the 
essential  element  of  human  happiness  and  human 
progress,  so  far  as  our  moral  and  spiritual  character 
are  concerned.  From  the  relation  of  the  sexes 
springs  all  that  gives  its  charm,  its  grace,  its  true 
value  to  human  intercourse.  It  creates  the  domes- 
tic circle.  It  gives  origin  to  the  sacred  relation 
of  husband  and  wife,  parent  and  child,  brother 
and  sister,  and  those  thousand  endearing  relations 
which  arise  from  them.  Strike  out  from  the  life 
of  man  all  the  hopes,  interests,  and  motives  which 
grow  out  of  this  relation,  and  what  were  left  him 


238  THE  YOUNG   MAN' 8  COUNSELOR. 

but   a  cheerless,  a  desolate,  and  a  merely  brutal 
existence?" 

These  are  just  and  elevating  views  of  marriage 
How  superior  to  those  "abject  and  licentious  doc- 
trines, destructive  of  the  conjugal  tie,  which  cer- 
tain classes  of  infidels  endeavor  to  spread  abroad 
in  the  world  !  Reject,  with  horror  and  disgust, 
such  hideous  teachings  !  They  would  degrade  you 
to  the  level  of  the  brute."  Indulge  purer  and 
holier  opinions,  and  you  will  thus  "  give  yourself 
no  reason  to  blush  before  the  chaste  and  faithful 
dove,  nor  degrade  the  sacred  character  imprinted 
on  your  brow  by  the  finger  of  God."  Your  heart 
will  give  forth  a  pure  affection,  worthy  of  your 
exalted  nature,  and  fit  to  be  offered  to  the  spot- 
less maiden  whose  charms  of  heart  and  mind  may 
attract  you  to  her  side.  And  remember,  you  can 
not  entertain  opposite  opinions  without  debasing 
and  degrading  yourself  and  your  betrothed,  by 
the  intercourse  implied  in  courtship.  Neither 
can  your  marriage  be  truly  "honorable,"  unless  it 
be  contracted  on  these  Scriptural  and  exalted 
principles. 


COURTSHIP  AND   MARRIAGE.  239 

With  these  opinions  deeply  impressed  on  his 
mind,  a  young  man  is  prepared  to  commence  a 
truly-virtuous  and  elevating  courtship.  Acci- 
dental, spontaneous,  and  thoughtless,  as  first  inti- 
macies between  the  sexes  are  apt  to  be,  he  will, 
nevertheless,  be  induced  to  pause  and  reflect  before 
acquaintanceship  ripens  into  a  positive  betrothal. 
Looking  at  the  true  ends  of  marriage,  he  will  in- 
quire if  the  lady,  toward  whom  his  love  is  blossom- 
ing, possesses  those  qualities  of  heart  and  intellect 
which  are  suited  to  answer  those  ends.  If  she 
does  not,  though  he  may  yield  to  the  impulses  of 
his  passion,  yet  he  will  be  far  more  likely  to  hesi- 
tate, before  soliciting  her  hand  in  marriage,  than 
he  would  be  if  his  views  were  of  that  degrading 
nature  before  animadverted  upon.  And  if  ever 
caution  is  needed,  it  is  here.  Mistake  is  so  easy. 
Undesigned  duplicity  is  so  natural.  The  lady, 
wreathed  in  smiles,  and  moving  with  cautious  effort 
to  conceal  defects  of  temper  and  intellect,  acquires 
an  almost  irresistible  influence  over  his  feelings. ' 
The  still  small  voice  of  the  better  judgment 
whispers,  "  Beware !"  It  suggests  the  lack  of 


240  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

one  adornment,  the  excess  of  a  particular  defect, 
the  absence  of  certain  desirable  qualities  and 
attainments,  in  vain.  The  heart  silences  the 
cooler  dictates  of  the  mind;  the  question  is  put, 
the  engagement  made,  the  vows  exchanged,  the 
marriage  celebrated,  and  the  wretched  parties 
learn,  when  too  late,  their  unfitness  for  each 
other ;  and,  too  often,  their  subsequent  life  is  mis- 
erable beyond  description.  Be  careful,  therefore, 
young  man,  at  the  very  beginning.  When  a  slight 
fondness  arises  in  your  heart  toward  any  particular 
lady,  hold  it  in  check  till  you  have  time  to  dis- 
cover what  she  is.  If  manifestly  unfit,  intellect- 
ually, morally,  or  socially  to  be  your  future  wife, 
stifle  your  affection.  Seek  other  society.  The 
pain  of  such  a  resolution  will  bear  no  comparison 
with  the  agony  consequent  upon  an  imprudent 
marriage. 

Most  young  men  are  chiefly  charmed  by  what 
are  termed  accomplishments  in  young  ladies. 
Thrumming  a  piano,  working  on  beads  or  worsted, 
smattering  bad  French,  and  worse  Italian,  are 
arts  regarded  by  the  enraptured  youth  with  strange 


COURTSHIP  AND   MARRIAGE.  241 

admiration,  and  he  pronounces  the  lady  performer 
a  paragon  of  all  perfection.  But  he  should  re- 
member that  these  things,  pleasing  and  even  ben- 
eficial as  they  are  in  their  place,  are  miserable 
substitutes  for  more  solid  and  indispensable  qual- 
ities. For,  as  HANNAH  MORE  has  well  observed, 
"Though  the  arts  which  embellish  life  claim 
admiration,  yet  when  a  man  of  sense  comes  to 
marry,  it  is  a  companion  he  wants,  and  not  an 
artist.  It  is  not  merely  a  creature  who  can  dress 
and  paint  and  sing;  it  is  a  being  who  can  comfort 
and  counsel  him ;  one  who  can  reason,  and  reflect, 
and  feel,  and  judge,  and  act;  one  who  can  assist 
him  in  his  affairs,  soothe  his  sorrows,  lighten  his 
cares,  purify  his  joys,  and  educate  his  children." 
She  should  be  well  versed  in  the  household  labors 
of  baking,  roasting,  washing,  cleaning,  and  sewing; 
otherwise  she  is  as  unfit  to  be  a  wife  as  "  a  shoe- 
maker would  be  to  navigate  a  man-of-war  across 
the  Atlantic."  Therefore, 

"  Take  heed  that  what  charmeth  thee  is  real,  nor  springeth  of 
thine  own  imagination : 

16 


242  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOK, 

And  suffer  not  trifles  to  win  thy  lore,  for  a  wife  is  thine  onto 

death ; 
The  harp  and  voice  may  thrill  thee — sound  may  enchant  thine 

ear, 
But  consider  thou,  the  hand  will  wither,  and  the  sweet  notes  tura 

to  discord ; 
The  eye  so  brilliant  at  even  may  be  red  with  sorrow  in  tho 

morning ; 
And  the  sylph-like  form  of  elegance  must  writhe  in  the  crampingg 

of  pain." 

Seek  for  substantial  as  well  as  artistical  excel- 
lences in  her  you  would  make  your  wife.  She 
should  be  frugal,  not  wasteful ;  for  an  extrava- 
gant wife  will  bring  embarrassment,  if  not  poverty 
itself,  into  your  habitation ;  her  ambition  for 
costly  dress,  costly  furniture,  costly  living,  will 
empty  your  purse,  ruin  your  business,  introduce 
you  to  the  insolvent  debtor's  court;  or,  worse  than 
all,  it  will  install  the  demon  of  discontent  by  your 
fireside.  She  must  be  industrious;  for  a  lazy 
woman  is  always  fretful,  odious,  and  disgusting. 
Who  could  endure  a  yawning,  slipshod,  sauntering, 
sleepy  wife?  She  should  be  grave  and  sober  in 
her  demeanor.  The  gay  romp,  the  rattling,  laugh 


COURTSHIP  AND  MAKRIAGE.  243 

ing  coquette,  may  be  very  amusing  at  a  party, 
but  she  is  usually  dull  at  home.  The  gayest  and 
liveliest  in  society  are  frequently  the  most  unhappy 
by  the  quiet  fireside.  She  must  be  modest;  for 
"  how  beautiful  is  modesty !  It  winneth  upon  all 
beholders."  A  young  woman  who  will  permit  an 
unchaste  word  or  hint  to  be  uttered  to  her,  even 
from  her  betrothed,  or  will  herself  give  utterance 
to  an  impure  suggestion,  is  unworthy  of  your  love. 
She  is  an  unsafe  person  to  be  admitted  within  the 
sacred  sphere  of  marriage.  She  must  be  intelligent 
and  sensible;  if  otherwise,  it  will  be  very  difficult 
to  maintain  that  esteem  for  her  which  is  the  basis 
of  genuine  and  lasting  love.  An  ignorant,  blun- 
dering, silly  woman,  is  sure  to  expose  her  husband 
to  incessant  mortification,  and  to  excite  contempt 
and  scorn  in  his  breast  toward  her.  She  should 
be  of  a  cheerful  and  an  amiable  disposition,  since 
on  nuisance  is  more  intolerable  than  a  scolding, 
complaining,  contentious  woman.  You  had  better 
be  chained  to  the  galleys,  or  allied  to  the  plague, 
than  to  be  married  to  such  a  creature.  And,  as  a 
final  quality,  your  intended  bride  should  posses* 


244  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S   COUNSELOR. 

a  pleasing  countenance.  I  do  not  say  that  sho 
needs  to  be  beautiful,  but  since  she  has  to  be 
your  constant  companion,  there  must  be  something 
attractive  in  her  form  and  face,  to  insure  the 
continuance  of  affection.  Beware  of  a  woman 
whose  features  express  harshness,  cynicism,  surli- 
ness, or  sourness.  Such  expressions  written  on 
the  countenance  are  the  unerring  indications  of  a 
mind  distempered,  of  an  unamiable  disposition, 
of  an  unhappy  heart.  Therefore,  avoid  all  such, 
as  you  would  shun  the  cholera.  Seek  one  from 
whose  countenance  inward  loveliness  beams  like 
the  softened  light  from  a  transparent  vase. 

"  Affect  not  to  despise  beauty :  no  one  is  freed  from  its  domin- 
ion; 

But  regard  it  not  a  pearl  of  price ;  it  is  fleeting  as  the  bow  in  the 
clouds. 

If  the  character  within  be  gentle,  it  often  hath  its  index  in  the 
countenance — 

The  soft  smile  of  a  loving  face  is  better  than  splendor  that  fadeth 
quickly." 

Remember  that  the  bond  of  marriage  is  as  gyves 
of  brass;  and,  therefore,  you  must  prefer  doing 
violence  to  your  feelings  rather  than  to  rush 


COURTSHIP  AND   MARRIAGE.  245 

blindfold  into  certain  misery,  which  can  terminate 
only  with  the  life  of  one  of  the  parties. 

But,  whenever  you  can  find  a  lady  possessing  the 
characteristics  I  have  enumerated,  seek  her  society, 
and,  if  you  can,  win  her  pure  affections.  Such  an 
association,  viewed  in  the  aspect  already  exhibited, 
next  to  religion,  is  the  best  and  surest  preserver 
of  virtue  in  a  young  man.  It  will  meet  a  want  of 
his  nature;  it  will  give  him  an  object  to  love; 
and,  as  ROUSSEAU  observes,  "Were  I  in  a  desert, 
I  would  find  out  wherewith  in  it  to  call  forth  my 
affections.  If  I  could  do  no  better,  I  would  fasten 
them  upon  some  sweet  myrtle,  or  some  melancholy 
cypress.  I  would  love  it  for  its  shade,  and  greet 
it  kindly  for  its  protection.  I  would  write  my 
name  upon  it,  and  pronounce  it  the  sweetest  tree 
in  all  the  desert.  If  its  leaves  withered,  I  would 
teach  myself  to  mourn;  and  if  it  rejoiced,  I  would 
rejoice  with  it." 

There  is  much  of  poetry  in  this,  but  there  is 
also  a  great  truth  beautifully  expressed.  The 
mind  must  have  something  to  love,  or  it  will  prey 
upon  itself.  But  when  it  finds  an  object  of  suffi- 


246  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

cient  worth  "  to  lead  it  out  of  itself  to  live  in 
and  for  another,"  then  it  has  gained  its  counter- 
part, and  develops  itself  in  a  most  pleasing  and 
happy  manner.  Therefore,  I  say,  seek  a  suitable 
object  for  your  affection,  though  years  may  elapse 
before  you  are  in  a  condition  to  marry.  TUPPEB 
gives  a  reason  for  such  a  step,  in  his  "  Proverbial 
Philosophy."  He  says, 

"They  that  love  early  become  like-minded,  and  the  tempter  touch- 

eth  them  not : 
They   grow   up   leaning  on  each  other,  as   the  olive   and  the 

vine." 

True  affection,  founded  upon  genuine  esteem, 
must  lie  at  the  basis  of  honorable  and  pure  mar- 
riage. Without  such  holy  love  in  both  the  parties, 
disgust  and  wretchedness  will  be  the  baleful  fruit 
of  their  legal  alliance ;  for 

"  He  that  shuts  love  out,  in  turn  shall  be 
Shut  out  from  love,  and  on  her  threshold  lie 
Howling  in  outer  darkness." 

But  even  love  is  not  the  sole  prerequisite  of  a 
happy  marriage.  A  young  man  may  find  it  neces- 
sary to  nip  his  affections  in  the  bud,  if  the  lady 


COURTSHIP  AND   MARRIAGE.  247 

who  attracts  him  is  far  above  his  rank  in  society. 
There  is  deep  meaning  in  the  poet's  counsel,  who 

Bays: 

"  Be  joined  to  thine  equal  in  rank,  or  the  foot  of  pride  will  kick 

at  tl ice ; 
AM  look  not  only  for  riches,  lest  thou  be  mated  with  misery." 

If  she  is  below  your  grade,  providing  she  have 
high  moral  and  mental  qualities,  her  lowliness  and 
poverty  need  not  stand  in  the  way  of  your  affec- 
tion, since  marriage  always  raises  or  depresses  the 
woman  to  the  level  of  her  husband.  Marry  not 
for  money's  sake.  Such  a  union  is  an  abomina- 
tion before  God,  and  a  degradation  to  the  parties. 
Better  let  your  bride  resemble  the  Greek  maiden, 
who,  when  asked  what  fortune  she  should  bring  to 
her  husband,  nobly  replied, 

"  I  will  bring  him  what  gold  can  not  purchase  — 
a  heart  unspotted,  and  virtue  without  a  stain, 
which  portion  is  all  that  descended  to  me  from  my 
parents." 

Neither,  if  you  happen  to  have  wealth,  should 
you  select  a  bride  who  is  more  influenced  by  your 
invested  moneys  and  flourishing  business  than  by 


248  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOE. 

pure  affection.  There  are  women,  of  whom,  to  the 
disgrace  of  their  sex,  it  may  be  said  in  the  lan- 
guage of  Byron, 

"  But  pomp  and  power  alone  are  woman's  care, 

And  where  these  are,  light  Eros  finds  a  fare ; 
Maidens,  like  moths,  are  ever  caught  by  glare, 
And  mammon  wins  his  way  where  seraphs  might  despair." 

Shun  all  such  creatures.  You  had  better  take 
a  viper  into  your  bosom. 

Avoid,  also,  a  skeptical  woman.  In  these  days 
of  ultraism  and  radicalism,  there  are  many  such 
"  moral  monsters,"  who,  forgetful  of  the  hope  and 
faith  we  naturally  expect  from  their  sex,  have 
broken  loose  from  their  God,  from  the  holy  Scrip- 
tures, and  from  the  delicacy  of  woman's  nature. 
Such  unfeminine  creatures  brawl  loudly  against 
revelation,  and  even  venture  before  the  public  as 
loquacious  leaguers  with  Voltaire,  Paine,  and  Ab- 
ner  Kneeland.  Such  women  are  unfit  for  mar- 
riage If  they  respect  not  the  claims  of  God,  nor 
heed  the  bonds  which  bind  them  to  religion,  how 
can  they  be  expected  to  be  faithful  to  the  law 
which  binds  them  to  a  husband?  Impossible  I 


COURTSHIP  AND  MARRIAGE.  249 

infidel  men  have  understood  this.  Hence,  LORD 
CHESTERFIELD  counseled  his  son  to  marry  a  woman 
of  pious  tendencies ;  and  DR.  BRAINARD  mentions 
a  very  profane  man,  who  expressed  joy  that  he  was 
not  "  to  be  linked  to  a  female  infidel/'  whom  he 
heard  question  the  truth  of  the  Bible.  These 
men,  bad  as  they  were  in  other  respects,  were  right 
in  their  opinion  of  the  unfitness  of  a  skeptical 
woman  to  be  a  wife.  Do  you  take  heed,  my  young 
friend,  and  keep  your  affections  from  such.  Celib- 
acy is  far  better  than  wedlock  at  the  altar  of 
infidelity. 

Be  not  in  haste  to  wed.  While  early  marriages 
are  to  be  encouraged,  if  circumstances  are  favora- 
ble, it  is  the  hight  of  folly,  and  often  the  first 
step  to  a  long  career  of  bitterness,  for  parties  to 
marry  without  any  reasonable  prospect  of  comfort- 
able support. 

"  Marry  not  without  means ;  for  so  shouldst  thou  tempt  Provi- 
dence ; 

But  wait  not  for  more  than  enough ;  for  marriage  is  the  DUTY  of 
most  men." 

This  is  excellent  counsel.     A  young  man  should 


250          THE  YouNa  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

•wait  till  his  income  is  sufficient,  his  business  estab- 
lished, his  resources  somewhat  certain.  Marriage 
brings  with  it  many  expenses,  and  these  increase 
with  time;  and  a  marriage  without  means  will 
surely  bring  poverty  and  sorrow.  Affection  is  a 
poor  banker,  a  miserable  purveyor,  a  wretched 
landlord.  With  limited  means  it  may  do  well, 
since  it  stimulates  industry,  excites  energy,  and 
can  invent  many  innocent  devices  to  compel  small 
resources  to  supply  large  wants.  Prudence  must 
be  allowed  to  utter  its  cautions  in  this  matter; 
and  if  you  are  prudent,  ypung  man,  you  shall  do 
well. 

In  courtship,  a  young  man  should  be  stable.  A 
marriage  engagement  is  a  solemn  and  a  serious 
affair.  It  takes  a  deep  hold  on  the  heart  of  a 
young  woman.  Her  first  love  is  a  holy  thing.  It 
becomes  life  and  gladness  to  her  spirit.  But, 

"  If  the  love  of  the  heart  is  blighted,  it  buddeth  not  again: 
If  that  pleasant  song  is  forgotten,  it  is  to  be  learnt  no  more; 
Yet  often  will  thought  look  back,  and  weep  over  early  affection; 
And  the  dim  notes  of  that  pleasant  song  will  lie  heard  ai  a 
reproachful  spirit, 


COURTSHIP  AND   MARRIAGE.  251 

Moaning  in  -3£olian  strains  over  the  desert  of  the  heart, 

When  the  hot  siroccos  of  the  world  have  withered  its  one  oasia.'' 

If  these  affecting  lines  are  true  to  experience, 
what  shall  be  said  of  a  young  man  who  sedulously 
seeks  a  young  girl's  love,  till,  in  her  trustful  sim- 
plicity, she  yields  him  her  whole  heart,  and  looks 
up  to  him  as  the  future  companion  of  her  life,  and 
then,  through  sheer  fickleness,  abandons  her  for 
another  ?  Is  he  not  cruel,  heartless,  and  false  ? 
Does  he  not  inflict  a  deadly  wound  on  her  spirit, 
from  which  she  may  never  wholly  recover?  Does 
he  not  deserve  the  severest  reprehension  ?  He 
does;  and  be  assured  that  no  young  man  can  be 
guilty  of  such  reckless  trifling  with  the  female 
heart,  without  being  subsequently  visited  by  the 
retributions  of  an  avenging  Providence.  His  sin 
will  "find  him  out." 

But  what  if  his  first  promises  were  prematurely 
given,  and  further  acquaintance  convinces  him  that 
the  lady's  ill  qualities  are  such  as  will  certainly 
imbitter  his  life  in  the  event  of  marriage  ?  Is  he 
then  to  consummate  his  courtship,  and  enter  with 
open  eyes  upon  an  "  ill-assorted  "  union  ? 


252  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

To  this  I  answer,  certainly  not,  providing  there 
is  a  discovery  of  positive  unfitness,  and  not  a  mere 
excuse  for  instability.  The  parties  had  better  suf- 
fer the  pang  of  separation  during  courtship,  than 
to  be  yoked  to  a  heritage  of  misery  and  sorrow  for 
life.  But  beware,  lest  mere  fickleness  leads  you  to 
imagine  faults  merely  to  furnish  an  excuse  for  the 
violation  of  your  engagement !  Prefer  to  keep 
your  promise  unbroken,  if  it  be  at  all  consistent 
with  your  hopes  of  happiness.  The  true  remedy 
for  such  separations  is  prevention.  Let  your  first 
advances  be  sufficiently  cautious  to  enable  you  to 
judge  of  the  lady's  character  before  you  enter 
on  more  familiar  intercourse.  And  another  means 
is,  to  treat  your  courtship  as  a  serious  part  of  your 
conduct.  Carry  it  on  in  a  manner  consistent  with 
the  high  purposes  of  marriage ;  not  with  silly 
gigglings  and  idle  commonplaces.  Seek  to  culti- 
vate each  other's  tastes,  to  call  forth  ideas  and 
modes  of  thought  hitherto  undeveloped.  Aim  to 
produce  a  spiritual  union  between  yourselves.  By 
this  means  the  little  things  which  usually  separate 
betrothed  parties  will  not  disturb  your  intercourse. 


COURTSHIP  AND   MARRIAGE.  253 

You  will  be  satisfied  with  each  other,  and  fitted  for 
the  more  intimate  and  sacred  unity  of  the  mar- 
riage state. 

Against  one  disgusting  practice,  but  too  popular 
in  many  parts  of  the  country,  allow  me  to  earnestly 
counsel  you.  I  mean  the  habit  of  sitting  up  to  a 
late  hour  of  the  night  with  your  betrothed.  While 
there  can  not  be  one  reason  urged  in  defense  of 
this  unchristian  custom,  there  are  serious  objec- 
tions against  it.  It  injures  health ;  it  unfits  for 
the  duties  of  the  next  day;  it  has  an  impure  as- 
pect, and  is  a  temptation  to  virtue.  By  all  the 
decencies  and  proprieties  of  life,  I  beg  you,  young 
man,  to  have  self-respect  sufficient  to  set  yourself 
heartily  against  it.  Let  your  intercourse  take 
place  at  proper  hours,  and  under  circumstances 
which  favor  you  and  yours  in  acquiring  an  affinity 
of  tastes  and  opinions. 

I  can  not,  perhaps,  close  this  chapter  on  court- 
ship and  marriage  more  profitably,  than  by  giving 
the  eccentric  and  celebrated  William  Cobbett's 
account  of  his  courtship.  He  was  a  sergeant- 
major  in  a  British  regiment  of  foot,  serving  in 


254  THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

Canada,  when  he  first  met  the  lady  who  afterward 
became  his  wife.  She  was  the  daughter  of  a 
sergeant  of  artillery,  so  that  in  rank  they  were 
pretty  equally  matched.  He  first  met  her  in 
company,  and  was  forcibly  struck  with  the  beauty 
of  her  countenance,  and  the  marked  propriety  of 
her  behavior.  He  resolved  to  note  her  conduct, 
and  to  study  her  character.  A  few  mornings  after 
this  first  introduction,  he  took  occasion  to  walk, 
with  one  or  two  companions,  past  her  father's 
house.  Although  it  was  scarcely  light,  he  saw 
her  at  the  door,  cheerfully  scrubbing  out  a  wash- 
tub  on  the  snow.  This  confirmed  his  good  opin- 
ion. Further  observation  being  still  more  in  her 
favor,  he  made  up  his  mind  that  she  should  be 
his  wife  at  a  proper  time.  This  purpose  he  never 
dreamed  of  changing.  It  was  settled  in  his  mind, 
and  he  treated  her  accordingly.  Her  father's 
regiment  being  ordered  to  England,  it  was  neces- 
sary for  them  to  be  separated.  To  show  the 
fixedness  of  his  purpose,  and  the  confidence  he 
had  in  her  affection,  he  gave  her  the  entire  amount 
of  his  savings  —  six  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  — 


COTJBTSHIP  AND  MARRIAGE.  255 

bidding  her  use  it;  if  necessary  for  her  personal 
comfort,  before  his  arrival  in  England.  Tbis  con- 
fidence was  not  misplaced.  Tbough  over  four 
years  elapsed  before  sbe  saw  bim  again,  and  sbe 
had  to  work  bard,  as  a  house-servant,  for  a  living, 
yet  she  remained  true  to  her  vows,  and  returned 
him  every  dollar  of  the  money  he  had  placed  in  her 
hands.  He  married  her,  and  attributed  much  of  his 
signal  success  in  life  to  her  very  excellent  qualities. 
But,  notwithstanding  Mr.  Cobbett's  fidelity  to 
his  first  promise  of  marriage,  he  narrowly  escaped 
the  guilt  of  its  violation.  His  betrothed  had 
been  absent  two  years.  He  was  rambling  in  the 
woods  of  New  Brunswick,  when  he  stumbled  upon 
a  clearing,  with  a  farmer  who  offered  him  the 
hospitalities  of  his  home.  This  sturdy  backwoods- 
man had  a  daughter  —  aged  nineteen  —  a  finely- 
formed,  blue-eyed  girl,  with  long,  light-brown  hair. 
Young  Cobbett  was  charmed.  He  repeatedly  vis- 
ited the  place,  mingled  in  the  parties  and  merry- 
makings of  the  homestead;  and,  notwithstanding 
he  felt  conscious  of  being  attracted  by  the  young 
lady,  and  that  she  was  also  becoming  interested  in 


THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 


him,  persisted  to  visit  her,  till  the  idea  of  parting 
grew  exceedingly  painful  to  both.  Happily  his 
sense  of  obligation  was  strong;  and,  wrong  as  he 
was  in  placing  himself  within  the  sphere  of  tempt- 
ation, and  in  trifling  with  the  affections  of  an- 
other, he  remained  faithful  to  his  first  vows.  This 
wrong  of  indulging  in  the  society  of  the  lady  of 
the  woods  he  very  ingeniously  confesses,  and  bids 
others  act  more  wisely  and  cautiously,  lest  they 
should  lack  the  self-control  which  finally  saved 
him  from  becoming  a  covenant-breaker.  I  join 
my  counsel  to  his,  and  advise  every  young  man, 
first,  to  exercise  due  caution  before  making  a  mar- 
riage engagement;  secondly,  having  made  it,  to 
consider  it  inviolable,  except  under  very  extraor- 
dinary circumstances ;  thirdly,  to  defer  his  mar- 
riage till,  in  the  opinions  of  his  parents  or  judi- 
cious friends,  the  suitable  time  has  arrived ;  and, 
finally,  to  enter  the  marriage  state  with  pure,  spir- 
itual, and  holy  views,  that  it  be  a  real  blessing  to 
him  and  his  bride  in  both  worlds.* 


9  For  Counsels  to  the  Married,  see  a  recent  work  by  the  author, 
entitled  "  Bridal  Greetings." 


COURTSHIP  AND  MARRIAGE.  257 


CONCLUDING    NOTE. 

AND  now,  dear  young  friend,  I  must  bid  you 
adieu.  I  have  urged  the  practice  of  great  princi- 
ples upon  your  understanding  and  heart,  that  you 
may  win  the  prize  of  a  happy  and  successful  life. 
I  have  stimulated  you  to  be  eminent  in  your  pro- 
fession, by  the  due  observance  of  the  great  and 
holy  truths  revealed  in  the  Divine  word.  Not  that 
I  consider  success  in  this  life  to  be  the  end  of 
your  existence.  No!  To  glorify  God,  to  attain 
his  moral  likeness,  to  diffuse  enjoyment  among 
your  fellow-creatures  —  these  are  the  grand  aims 
of  human  life.  But  in  reaching  these  aims — in 
grasping  the  greater — you  will  more  surely  reach 
the  lesser  than  by  any  other  method  j  for  religion 
is  the  good  genius  of  both  worlds.  This  idea  I 
have  endeavored  to  illustrate  in  the  preceding 
pages.  Let  me  entreat  you  to  seize  it  heartily 
and  earnestly !  Let  it  blend  with  all  your  think- 
ings. Allow  it  to  mold  your  character,  to  govern 
17 


258  THE  YOUNG   MAN'S  COUNSELOR. 

your  conduct.  Thus  will  you  rise  to  usefulness 
and  enjoyment  on  earth,  and  to  a  place  in  that 
moral  firmament  where  the  wise  and  good  "SHALL 

BHINE  AS  THE  STARS  FOREVER  AND  EVER." 


THE  END. 


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